Fed up, can't speak out without being torn to shreds

[Psuedoshoes]

I made the mistake of trying to engage in an intelligent debate on twitter about sex vs gender. My comment was simple, along the lines of "nobody can change sex, everybody's entitles to live their lives with no discrimination, be great if everybody could work together on a solution" - and I got absolutely torn to shreds. People retweeting saying that people like me should just die, called the c-word, random people joining in to tell me what a cunt and worthless piece of shit I am. I rarely speak up but decided that was the wrong attitude, now I wish I didn't. I suffer with my mental health at times anyways so feeling utterly shite now. Why can't we engage in debate without it turning into a gang of randomers joining in and dishing out vile hatred?

I don’t think social media in general but Twitter in particular are good places for debate. I’ve said this before I live in Ireland and we have had the most toxic debates ever for referendums on social issues, divorce, abortion, marriage equality but I have never seen anything like the debate around transgender ideology in my lifetime. Debates on TV and radio are moderated, you are absolutely never ever speaking hoping to change your opponent’s opinion, only the middle ground opinion and there is equal time dedicated to both sides of the discussion as required by law in referenda for balanced debate. Social media debates are people speaking their views to the opposing sides and no one listening utterly pointless.

Calling someone slurs C word F word etc all break twitter terms. Report every reply for harassment or hate speech.

Why can't we engage in debate without it turning into a gang of randomers joining in and dishing out vile hatred?

Indeed @Psuedoshoes

About 4 years ago, I responded to some journalist** on Twitter asking him not to call women "cis" as we did not "identify" with sexist oppression, and yes, got the death & the rape threats. And a complaint to my employer, 'to try to get me sacked for being 'transphobic.'

** Yes, stupid old me, it was Owen Jones ...

MeltsAway, that really is contemptible. A journalist who tries to get people sacked for seeking facts and debating. Irony is dead ...

Oh sorry, didn't explain properly - the journalist didn't try to get me sacked.

Other people did that - people I had never met, spoken with, or had anything to do with at my workplace. And all but one of them were dirty cowards & stayed anonymous.

Twitter keeps accounts live for blokes who are openly paedophiles, so they can share information with other paedophiles where they can access child abuse images or videos.

They keep accounts live for TRA who threaten to
Dox who send death and rape fantasies about you tto you when say sex is real.

They close accounts when you say sex is real or men can't be women.

Says it all really. Also something like a third of accounts are automatic bots. Just drop off it.

Twitter isn't a place for intelligent debate. On any topic.
This.

By way of example how the internet is not in the slightest bit representative of real life, look at the current vaccination programme. The comments under any post or article on vaccination tend to be full of conspiracy nutjobs. You'd think that 90% of people were going to refuse the jab. In reality, take up is 90%.

Ahh I had something like this very similar, tried to speak up on fb, its flipping grim. I'm sorry you got abuse. But good on you for speaking up! I put up a thread about this and got some good advice - that there will be others lurking and reading your tweets that will agree with you, and hopefully more people will see the craziness of this all! Hope you feel better, be proud for sticking up for your beliefs!

As others have said, performative pro-trans is the new home of misogyny. Exhibit A in evidence is that male people don't get the same pile-ons at all for saying the same things you did.

It's them, not you. It feels hateful because it is. Nothing but the modern form of pursuing the witch through the streets.

Surprised at the responses here. My Twitter feed is a hundred times nicer, gentler and more supportive than MN Talk. In fact it's where I go to escape all the sneering & bitterness on here...

Maybe you should change the accounts you follow? Twitter is much easier to feel at home in, since your feed is poster-based rather than thread-based. So you can block individual users or keywords easily.

Reddit is the same. I think its because both are heavily populated by younger people. You don't view the whole vista of this completely misogynistic society until you have experience. There will be people who view your tweets who appreciate them, even if they don't respond. It's hard to put yourself out there, I applaud you.

I'm not sure why anyone would post on twitter with a non anonymous account. It's an absolute cesspit.

It's really pointless to try to have a debate on Twitter. People twist your words or just go off on tangents and give stupid examples etc. I gave it up a year ago and feel much better. You really don't achieve anything but increasing your blood pressure.

Well bit of an update on this one! Said lady said something awful after the passing of Prince Philip - some high-profile people picked up on it and she's been getting tweeted and retweeted all over. Instead of apologising, she's doubled down with even more vileness. Turns out she's a freelance journalist and several papers and magazines have confirmed she won't be working for them again. Feel a bit sorry for her if I'm honest, but maybe she will think twice in future before being so cruel to people.

Feel a bit sorry for her if I'm honest, but maybe she will think twice in future before being so cruel to people.

I hope so. What these people never seem to realise is that if they are part of a bloodthirsty mob hunting down someone who has said the wrong thing, maybe one day they will say the wrong thing and the mob will turn on them. Unfortunately, they have to learn the hard way.

You know, I like twitter! Firstly the positives - I have met some really lovely people and someone is always around for a chat. When something big is happening - like Line of Duty or the Olympics - you can follow along and see what all sorts of different people are saying.

I have built a bit of an echo chamber when it comes to GC opinions, but I step outside every now and again - I engaged a couple of people on the Richard Dawkins thread today, for example. I have been threatened with violence (Innocent smoothies thread), called the usual names, blocked by an old friend and officially declared no friend of the LGBTQ community, but to be honest, I don't mind...... Its good to test out my knowledge on them and I always win.

That's mumnet training :-)

Until a few days ago, I felt the same as rabbitwoman. But I commented on a popoular thread (can’t remember which) and was attacked and bullied by an anonymous account who insisted I was cis over and over. Don’t know why it upset me. Perhaps because it hadn’t happened for a while. Anyway I reported the bully for misgendering. I thought it was pretty cut and dried as I had asked them to stop and they hadn’t.

Anyway Twitter got back to me very rapidly to say no rules broken. I reported yet another post where the person was forcing an identity on me after my first report. They confirmed no rules broken.

So I haven’t deleted my account, but I have logged out. May delete later.

And I know it’s stupid and I already knew GC women were unfairly moderated by Twitter staff, but this was so clear and my account so moderate that it was the final straw for me.