Before you press that send button check if your emotions are not being manipulated… Wizard’s Third Rule: “Passion rules reason, For better or for worse.” – Terry Goodkind
The internet and social media have made information dissemination so easy. At the click of a button, a story or image becomes viral. Naturally one of the things to look out for is fake news as one can unwittingly fall prey to the fake news pandemic. But this article is not about fake news, not directly. It’s about how social media thrives and is designed to rouse your emotion or to trigger you to react, Twitter fingers…
A Twitter post has been making the rounds on the microblogging site where a person is ranting about how one should not do certain things in a public area especially somewhere designated as a place for food consumption, accompanying the rant is a photo of a lady breastfeeding in a restaurant.
At first glance, the post seems to be referring to breastfeeding, but when you read through to the end and scan through the image you will see that the rant is referring to the flip flops on the table.
The comments which follow the post read like they should be factored in as results of a behavioural experiment by psychology students to demonstrate how most of us interact on social media with a chip on our shoulder ready to bring righteous indignation to any situation that offends our sensibilities.
On a positive note, it was refreshing to see the responses from those who were standing up for breastfeeding in public, although a part of me wonders how many of those were simply posturing on Social Media in the real world they would demand that a breastfeeding mother cover-up. Breastfeeding mum told to cover up responds by shoving a blanket over her head
I will be honest when I read the first lines of the tweet rant I felt a prickly sensation prodding me to make a scathing response in defence of breastfeeding but when I got to the end then saw the footwear on the table, it clicked, I had almost been had. The comment thread was full of people making similar admissions and others who had fallen for the trap plus those making fun of those who had, for their lack of comprehension skills or their reading to respond instead of reading to understand.
Some took their L’s graciously and others tried to defend that if one had not seen the footwear on the table they could not be blamed for assuming the post was an anti-breastfeeding in public rant. And still missed the point.
A quick search on the internet shows that according to a Daily Mail article dated 1 September 2018 the image and a similar rant were posted on a Perth Facebook group resulting in very responses.
Several social media users have gone to “borrow” this and post similar rants using the image and well there’s nothing new under the sun.
Have you seen this post? Would you have fallen for this trap?
Lool… The point flew right over their heads