Twitter - what an absolute cesspit

[ImaSababa]

I had to deactivate my account last night. I feel like an absolute coward for doing so, and I will probably reactivate at some point. But wow...

I happened to comment on a post from Planned Parenthood, expressing disappointment at their use of non-female specific wording regarding abortion. Within minutes I'd been attacked by a legion of TRAs with manga profile photos. One delightful specimen managed to find my work website, and launched an attack there.

I should have stayed to fight, but I just feel like I'm too old and too weary to be waging war with little twits on social media.

Anyone else left Twitter, or gone back to fight the good fight??

I logged on earlier and a wee notification flashed up that WYP has blocked me. I can't see any accounts that have blocked me, there are a load of WYP ones.

Not sure what I've done! 🤔🙄

I was only on there to keep in contact with one friend. I decided it wasn't worth it and honestly, the world is a bit saner without it. Not a good place to spend your precious time.

I've thought of it before as internet flypaper, and hope that the real stinkers just get stuck in there arguing with each other endlessly.

@MondayYogurt

It's bad for your mental health. It's essentially brainwashing - absorbing the repeated thoughts of other people. That said, you can curate your timeline, mute conversations, mute or block people, mute key words, and generally take control of what level you engage. My mute list extensive. And I don't get into arguments. No one's ever won a 'debate' on twitter.

This is so true. I’m off twitter (it’s too insane) but whenever I do engage in a discussion now on SM I always think of the audience rather than the person I am debating. I’m never going to change ‘their’ mind but I might hit a spot with somebody who is reading.

I deactivated for a couple of weeks and have gone back with a locked account. I've changed my settings so I only get notifications from people I follow which helps. I've deleted the app from my phone so can only look at it via the computer. I just want to keep up with developments etc without getting too sucked in. Also James Dreyfus follows me now, which I'm weirdly proud of, so I can't delete it just do what feels right for you, and remember that it is not representative of the UK at large.

@twoHopes

I'm probably going to piss some people off by saying this but I really think the pile-ons by GC feminists I see on Twitter are doing damage to the gender critical cause. Someone will post something stupid and egregious about "uterus owners" or whatever and you'll see hundreds of women replying. I don't think the original tweeter will change their mind, they'll probably just feel angry and upset. And from an outsiders perspective I think it looks a bit like an ambush or a disproportionate attack and doesn't necessarily win sympathy for the cause.

Willing to hear opposing views on this as I'm sure there will be people here that disagree with me.

I think Niemoller might disagree with you on that

well I think it does have an effect one it makes the 'silent ones' who don't call out gender crap realise that loads of other people don't take the wokus dei gospel and two it scares the bejeezus willies out of them ...who think they own the discourse - they aren't going to change their minds but they might think twice about promulgating it.

On the subject of Neimoller

First they came for the writers
But I wasn't a writer so I didn't speak out
Then they came for the embroiderers
But I wasn't an embroiderer so I didn't speak out
Then they came for the glass blowers
But I wasn't glass blower so I didn't speak out....

I'm VERY outspoken and frankly sweary on twitter but I've had several people who haven't responded to a SINGLE one of my tweets tell me IRL that I've made them think. I have no children, no career, I've nothing to lose I will keep on being mouthy.

My account is blocked anything I’m not interested in get blocked.

I'm still on, but I don't have any info or picture on there. My previous handle was banned, I could delete a tweet and be unbanned but I refuse.

Like @fatblackcatspaw no children or career so I feel almost an obligation because so many people are threatened or bullied off.

I too deleted my account earlier this year. I will follow links from MN and have a look but I won't engage in conversation threads.

I used to enjoy Twitter. I deliberately followed people with different opinions so I could broaden my horizons. It was fascinating. One by one, the most fascinating people started leaving and I couldn't work out why.

I didn't want to close myself into an echo chamber, so didn't block people and it became really angry, and unpleasant. I wasn't enjoying it, so I left. It gave me a nice feeling to leave - I felt I was telling Twitter what I thought of it

As for GC ‘pile ons’, they tend to be (rightful IMHO) objections to things that do deserve to be challenged with another point of view. And I think they’re of some use by virtue of generally being sane, considered and grammatically correct, in stark contrast to the illiterate mockery from the anime gif ‘literal violence’ brigade. Also I doubt you get anyone on the GC side who could be bothered with using block lists of people they would never come across anyway. It all highlights the divide, if you ask me.

What is it with the animé/manga avatars? You just know they're going to be activists. I wonder whether, having re-designed themselves in the virtual world, they're convinced they can do the same in reality.

I am not sure, but I am a little suspicious as two of my close friends have daughters who have been into manga/anime and both have now started living as boys.

I stay on Twitter because sometimes it's the only way to show opposition to the nonsense. Twitter is noticed. However, to spare my sanity I have my notifications switched off. It makes it easier to make my point and then duck out.

I don't want to engage with anime avatars because time and time again they prove themselves unable to think. It is of no use. But if I have made a silent reader think or shown that not everyone supports a certain viewpoint, I'm good

Perhaps everyone with one of those avatars is actually in their early- to mid-teens? That would explain a lot!

How old do you need to be to have a Twitter account? Who checks?

agreeed anime avatars are a red flag which is why when I saw Zero Tollerance Trust used them from staff pics they were beyond help or redemption

beyond hope... I mean if I saw them floating by i'd kick them further in the river

Lebranic, what does 'living as a boy' actually involve? I wondered this morning as I pulled on trousers, hoodie and boots, brushed my short(ish) hair and strolled out. I might only need to change my name and pronouns...

What annoys me most about Twitter is that the media and companies view it as a way to gain insight to the opinions of the average person...Twitter has some of the lowest numbers of users amongst social media platforms, and the users they do have - well they don’t represent the average member of society. It’s used as an echo chamber by activists.

@NewlyGranny

What is it with the animé/manga avatars? You just know they're going to be activists. I wonder whether, having re-designed themselves in the virtual world, they're convinced they can do the same in reality.

It's like they are signalling that they don't live in the real world and aren't going to engage like grownups in discussions.

Many of the young men on twitter likely grew up on 4chan and similar sites where anime fandom is combined with misogyny, porn and a pro-peadophile culture. I looked it up and 4chan has an LGBT board that is mostly about being MTF. Here is what they currently are chatting about.

Dumped it about 3 years ago. It was like escaping from the basement of a serial killer. Only 8% of the world's population is on Twitter. Yet politicians are obsessed with it . The people we need to reach on this issue are mostly not on it? Anyway I think you will be so much happier without it.

I keep twitter but with an anonymous account. It's good for info and seeing what the next tactic is. It's also good for finding ways to fight for common sense.

Lol AbhannMor
like escaping from the basement of a serial killer

Plenty of people on twitter are OBSESSED with MN

Nice editing there too.

Only twitter mEGabRAiNz can extrapolate two posts to stand for an entire multiforum site.

"I saw a cat eat a hobnob once so ALL CATS EAT HOBNOBSSSS"

From my perspective, I see nothing but win for not having an account - I'm not contributing to the shit on there, and if someone links to something I can usually read it because if I'm not a member the dimwits can't block me and I can screenshot and evidence the lunacy/threats if needed.