To marvel at the curtain twitching and spite

[viques]

You know when they had witch burnings, public hangings, or if you are French , public executions by guillotine? Well I now realise that they weren't exaggerating the crowds that turned up to enjoy the spectacle judging by the number of nasty , spiteful posts today frothing at the mouth about how their neighbours are using schools, getting deliveries, standing too close, etc etc etc . I think the posters who are hoiking their judgey pants so dangerously close to their tonsils are the same ones who would be denouncing their neighbours to the witch finder, the revolutionary committees and magistrates before packing a picnic and their knitting and taking themselves off for a day trip to the village pond or the local prison.

I know MN can be a playground for mean girls, I know everyone is stressed and anxious, but omg this virus is bringing out the worst in some people.

Chill out guys, eat if you have it and cuddle a to get your blood pressure down.

I don't see nay of that in real life.

People are genuinely coming together to help where they can.

My neighbours have flouted the guidance to a ridiculous level. But I wouldn't snitch on them.

I agree I keep thinking of Nazi Youth or Orwells 1984 and thought police and the kids dobbing their parents in for crimes the parents didn't even know they'd committed. I have seen people getting snappy at each other in the shop. When I take my kids our for a run around the park I'm wondering if curtains are twitching.

MN has always been a place for many bitter and angry posters to express themselves, so that's hardly new.

Most people just get on with life, and are not so bitter and jealous of others, thankfully.

The difference about denouncing today and yesterday is that what others do directly impact everyone. So people are locked in, losing money, having no freedom and so on. Why should they put up with others who disregard any guideline and will increase the problem and make it last longer.

When you start seeing family members or close friends dying, you will realise what the issue is, and won't put up so much with others happy to abuse the system and be stupid. It does matter.

None of us wants to stay locked in. None of us wants to stay locked in longer because the twat next door decided the rules don't apply to them. So It makes sense.

Certainly on Mumsnet, I think the biggest sellers have been judgy pants! Fortunately less so in real life.

Oh for sure, the witch burners are still amongst us and it takes very little for them to rear their ugly heads

YANBU, it's pretty sinister. I haven't seen any of this in real life though, and not on my FB. Only on MN threads and in MNers' comments about what they've seen elsewhere on social media.

Agree OP

It's been incredibly eye opening

While I have not seen much of it irl, the fact that people post about it anonymously is very telling. Like with Brexit people were at first quietly racist, after the results many became openly racist.

My facebook local group is similar. Long range shots of people in a park. List of someone's shopping trolley. Sharing posts about someone's milk being stolen 700 miles away. Ffs.

my neighbour across the road had a BBQ with her mates last Thursday and a baby shower this weekend

I admit I did suck my teeth a bit but I didn't report or rush to MN to start an indigent thread about it! YANBU

I have seen it in RL as well- just recently, woman telling cashier off in local shop for not wearing a mask, and another woman shouting at DH because he was walking with our DC in the park!

until now ghosty

ah I thought it would be safe here mind as it wont be full of bosom hikers (I hope)

Agreed OP.

Oh the sanctimonious, competitive martyr, spiteful bullshit I've seen (and personally taken) on social media.

Those locked in their houses are secretly angry at key workers, even NHS workers and I believe it's for being allowed to go out (and possibly also for the perceived "standing" which comes with it).

Reading the many, many accounts of even doctors and nurses (and, in one case reported on here, gas men) being abused in public for being "spreaders" or failing to keep an impossible 2m distance, and the level of curtain twitching at key workers' comings and goings (another disgraceful thread - the OP was planning to question them ), I don't believe for a second that all this happy clappy gratitude is universal or even close to it.

There are a lot of envious, spiteful, small people out there just waiting for a whiff of power to expend all their pent up competitive bitterness. No doubt those same people will be out on the streets next Thursday at 8pm banging pots, all smiles and butter wouldn't melt.

It's freaky and tbh just as damaging as the virus itself. Whilst i guess i would roll eyes at nieghbours having a big party, i fail to get wound up as someone put a non essential item in their trolley.
Everyone will be crying over a recession after this .

I have seen a bit of this on social media but most people thankfully seem to be staying calm and getting on with life without feeling the need to complain about her down the road going out twice a day. The ones that ARE complaining drown out the quiet people though.

Also I take comfort from seeing how the grumble squad are mostly complaining people who are following the rules anyway, not people throwing parties or whatever. So that suggests to me most people are doing what they need to be doing anyway.

YANBU
I think the normal people are slowly backing away from MN. Every thread gets invaded by a load of baying zombies with their fingers on caps lock.

I agree with you, OP. It is almost as worrying as the virus really.

I've read plenty of posts where I could imagine the OPs hoiking their judgy pants, donning high viz jackets and setting up their own roadblocks and bollocking everyone they snared in their net if they could get away with it.

This seems to have brought self-styled vigilantes out into the open more, and they are really enjoying the power trip.

MN is batshit at the best of times, so it's no worse than usual.

But one of my neighbours IS curtain twitching, and I do think to myself... I bet she's on MN

Ive always thought MN was a fairly nice sensible corner of the internet and twitter was bonkers, and now it's vice versa.

On one hand, I've seen genuinely helpful community and neighbourhood efforts. On the other, I see people being thoughtless and selfish regarding social distancing. Also there are the people who pop up on social media as if it's their job to police the community with things like 'the road outside my house is busy. Go home and stay home people!' My favourite today was a 'plea' not to use pots and pans during the NHS clap as it's disturbing dogs and cats!

i have been on mn years now and do worry that what people post on mn are what people really think but do not say

YANBU
I think the normal people are slowly backing away from MN

I agree.
I find myself spending less and less time on here lately (which is a good thing I suppose!) as it's definitely changing.
It's always had your nasty, toxic posters but this....? It's something else. Like a pp said, it's sinister.
So much bitterness, and jealousy, and curtain twitching.
I'm going to have to go on a FB mute of certain people I think as well as it's starting to seep through there.

Along with this is the shaming of anyone who dares say that they are finding anything hard due to e.g. money worries, mental health or any other quite understandable problem. It is 'people are dyying, how can you be so selfish to feel like that' and an underlying weird virtuousness which can even get competitive (one thread was about how infrequently people had been out / to the supermarket for essentials, for example)

If you point out that sadly, many people do, well, die each day you get called a 'monster'

There was a funny cartoon I saw online the other day which reminded me of it, a posh voice from a mansion porch "Why can't they just stay in their garden and not go to the park!" Reminded me a bit of MN..