Why are people utterly terrified of anyone or anything a bit different?

[OrangerySmorangery]

There’s a trainspotter who posts videos on social media. He’s in his 20s, is eccentric, and his enthusiasm is infectious. The way he films himself is sometimes a little strange (he uses a head mounted camera to show his reaction as the train goes by) but it’s really difficult not to like him and his videos. I should add that I have no interest in trains or the railways beyond using them.

He’s clearly living his best life and making money doing it; more power to him! It’s actually quite life affirming.

A good proportion of the comments under his videos are really positive. However, there is a sizeable minority who make fun or are abusive in a really nasty way. Mostly male I should add.

Ive just no idea why anyone would feel the need to respond in that way. He’s a harmless guy doing what he enjoys.

Well that escalated 😆

Thanks for the heads up 🙏 So he's like Nardwuar, the Canadian journalist who put on a similar 'childish enthusiasm' act while interviewing bands and played off that while being a goady arse behind the scenes. Interesting.
It's a shame the trolls aren't calling him out for cynically manipulating his public image, instead of making the web and larger society an even less welcoming space for people with neurodevelopmental conditions. There will be many young people and adults with ND who may be reading those comments.

They've always got to be oppressing someone somewhere

Of course, nobody else ever oppressed anybody else.

The Portuguese didn’t have a massive empire and Scotland didn’t unite with England primarily to further her colonial aspirations.

All nastiness / bullying stems from insecurity. So I wouldn’t say they’re “terrified” as such, they just have low self-worth and not much confidence in their preferences and life choices. So they denigrate others’.

Because the internet allows you to anonymously say things in a public forum that you would never say in person. It’s really brought out the worst in people

Not sure i agree. Anonymity provides protection for women to say things without being stalked etc

I crochet and follow a fair number of crocheters on YouTube. Now one couldn’t think of a more innocuous hobby and these mainly women show their makes, do market vloggs and some live ‘crochet with me’ videos. Harmless right? Well every once in a while they will mention the hate they get in the comments. ‘You’re too fat’ ‘your voice is screechy’ ‘your makes are crap’… plus other personal attacks. I mean, why? What do the posters hope to gain? But if even crocheters can get the trolls then anyone can. Some people are so low they seem to think insulting people they wouldn’t dream of in real life boosts them in some weird and sad way.

Nonsense. We are not a country without souls. Go troll with your hatred on another website.

"Normal" generally refers to something typical, usual, or conforming to a standard. It can describe a state of being or a situation that is not unusual or out of the ordinary. In various contexts, "normal" can also refer to something that is sane, healthy, or free from mental disorder."

I have always railed against the use of the word "sad" to describe certain activities and the people who enjoy them.

If person A enjoys something but person B hates it, it logically follows that person B is the sadder, or at least the less happy, of the two.

Edited to correct bad grammar!

I have no interest in trains. I suppose never understood why people would be into standing there watching them. That guy's utter joy though has made me realise I don't need to understand. Just watching how happy he gets actually changes my mood.

I have to say I am really disappointed to hear he is rude and unpleasant. I am actually gutted to hear that.

Such wariness/suspicion is kind of understandable. Humans are dangerous creatures and capable of almost limitless evil. You only have to look at the number of posts on MN about childhood sexual abuse. Or think back to school. I can remember some horrific bullying when I was a kid. But what sticks in my memory most is the joy on the faces of other kids as they watched it happening. I might be a cynic, but I distrust the majority of people, and I am very careful who I allow into my life.

Today, everyone is falling over themselves to prove how liberal and tolerant they are. The more tolerant and open you are, the cooler you are. But you soon see what an act/pose that is when it comes to people's children. They might say "oh, don't be so small-minded and bigotted...X is such an interesting and exotic character." But they would never leave their 12-year-old daughter alone in a room with X.

yes, you Often lash out at or criticise someone doing something that you daren't do yourself or have been told is wrong. So in case that could be "showing off" Now most people with an iota of emotional intelligence realise it's a them thing and have a word with themselves in their head. But very thick people can't do that, and they are via social media being exposed to people and concepts they would never have been if SM didn't exist.

Many people are threatened by someone doing their own thing. I think they're jealous deep down that someone has the confidence to be themselves. It irritates them, and they will only pick on an easy target...someone who doesn't fit the norm.

Just read in here at times. Only females

I'm pretty average normal woman but don't do cliques, women's drinks etc

I'm not in. Doing my own life

I love this guy, he’s great.

I think a lot of it with him is people men who are insanely jealous at the amount of positive attention this geeky, nerdy, probably ND, not especially attractive man gets.

Yanbu

He’s not real!

He has been a male model in real life.

Well!!! My gaster is flabbered.

You can be into modelling and trains.

I've read a lot about him but nothing has convinced me he's fake. Does he play up to a stereotype for views? Sure, but so do all social media influencers.

His name is fake for a start!

Are being a model and trainspotting mutually exclusive?

How does that make him fake?

It's not, it's just a pseudonym he was encouraged to use by a professor at university so that his hobby didn't cause issues with him finding a job.

It’s not fear of difference in this case, but I think it’s definitely driven by insecurity and poor self esteem. All bullying relies on sniffing out perceived weakness and then making your verbal or physical attack in front of an audience of similar IQ in order to feel superior and validated.

There have always been utter cunts of every stripe in every walk of life, but internet anonymity brings them out in droves.

Francis seems pretty unaffected by it, though, and he’s widely appreciated by a massive audience and appears to be living his best life.