Does This Make Me Sound Crazy?

I've blocked my own Mamaw (Grandmother) on Facebook...

Also, one Cousin, a number of old schoolmates I have no interest in re-connecting or communicating with, and ex-coworkers who went out of their way to do wrong by me. At one point, my own Mother, Father, and Sister were blocked.

Okay, this does make me sound crazy, without any context or backstory.

I firmly believe in, "The Golden Rule". Treat others, as you would like to be treated. Leading by example, as it were. This isn't some original or new theory I've come up with on my own. It's tried and true, for people who have the level of integrity to follow through with it.

For years, I avoided Facebook. I knew from previous experiences while playing World of Warcraft and League of Legends, there is no way, you should ever expect people to follow The Golden Rule while online.

"Internet Bad-Asses", as they're known in online communities. People who feel emboldened to say and do things they would not do IRL (in real life) because they're safe behind a computer screen and keyboard.

Most of the people I've blocked on social media have been blocked for good reason(s). Maybe I don't remember every single thing they've said or done to deserve it, but I feel 99.9% confident in my ability to suss out people for who they are pretty well, even if I haven't met them IRL.

I attribute this to working in Customer/Guest Service related jobs for over a decade. I also have my lifelong love and passion for all forms of gaming to thank, as well.

You want to get to know someone pretty well, but only have a few hours? Play a round or two of Uno with them. It can tell you a lot about a person. Seriously. 

The list of reasons for blocking old schoolmates includes an insurmountable amount of bullying and/or harassment during our time spent together, even all those years ago. In some cases, they directed their time towards family members or friends. I've blocked some for more recent discoveries. For instance, they're incredibly homophobic, racist, transphobic, and in some cases, exhibited shared values with White Nationalists and White Supremacists.

For some of my ex-coworkers, it has been for almost the exact same reasons.

One of my ex-coworkers was a good friend of mine until I discovered, she believed the events at The Red Hen, should be used as an example of how hypocrisy comes from, "The Left" of the political spectrum. Never mind the decades worth of rampant homophobia from, "Life-Loving, Compassionate, Political Christians of The Right", or the cheers over the recent Supreme Court decision involving Masterpiece Cakeshop from the Trump Administration and those who support similar actions to defend "Religious Freedom".

For my family. More of the same. There's a joke circulating the internet.

"I've heard of this great new app that can discover who in your family is racist, homophobic, misogynistic, sexist, etc. It's called Facebook."

Granted, not all of them fit this description, but I've seen and read more conspiracy theories than I care to recount, as well.

Some of my family members subscribe to the "Fake News" narrative. They'll purposefully avoid news articles from CNN, MSNBC, and over "unsavory" and "Liberal" Mainstream Media Outlets spreading their lies online, but they absolutely must share "Karen's" thoughts on "Obummer" and "KILLARY!".

Everybody has their own or at least, has heard about, "Karen".

Ever had a family member share a news story on their personal feed directly from, Iowa Representative Steve King? I have.

One Google, and you'll find out a few things about Steve King.

He's a racist and associates himself with Nazi Sympathizers.

In the end, I have legitimate reasons for blocking ex-friends, old schoolmates, and even family members.

In reality, what does this change?

My Mamaw is still my Mamaw. My Dad is still my Dad. So on and so forth.

"You can choose your friends, but you can't choose your family." - Harper Lee 

Correct, but I think it's entirely safe to say this is now an antiquated quote. Especially, for the modern internet day and age, we live in. Now it should read more like...

"You can choose your friends, family, and who you want to associate yourself with, but only on Social Media platforms."

Doesn't quite roll off the tongue the same way, though...