Let’s keep online debate friendly, not angry

It’s something we’ve all experienced. Those ill-considered, vitriolic remarks directed personally at the individual that come when we write something online.  

Well, we may not be able to stop that happening on other parts of Facebook, but we can all help on ‘our site’ Starts at Sixty to keep comments friendly and not personal to the writer or other commenters.

I suffered such an attack in response to a comment I made recently on an article posted by Starts at 60 about Hillary Clinton’s address to her alma mata (the one where she was wearing that ridiculous-looking hat). She’s made her thoughts on Donald Trump clear, and I made what I thought was a fairly innocuous comment on the story.

Well, I sure put the cat among the pigeons! I clearly upset some readers who had a different opinion on Trump and, suffice it to say, their comments were not nice! One woman posted a GIF of a frog that suggested that ‘I put a paper bag over my ugly f**** face’.

I know that other users of Starts at 60 have suffered similar abuse, and some to a far greater degree. I can understand this kind of rudeness from young people who don’t have the maturity to think carefully before they write on social media.  But I can’t understand it from people of my own generation, who should have the maturity and wisdom of life to know better.

It’s a tough job for Starts at 60 to ‘police’ this, so, I’d suggest if you are subject to this sort of vitriol or witness another member who has, report it to SAS so it can act.

We are members of a wonderful group that offers information on a myriad of topics from home-decorating to haemorrhoids and most of our ‘members’ understand what the word ‘debate’ means; it’s a discussion between people with opposing views.

It’s not an opportunity to exercise a personal vendetta.

Let’s keep this tremendous forum free from unkindness. 

What do you think?