You Talking to Me?

This is a general purpose announcement for anyone who wants to troll, diss, or otherwise insult me on my blog, Facebook page, Twitter timeline, Instagram, or any other Busy Black Woman platform...don't.

Not unless the purpose of your outreach is to engage in genuine conversation. Because in that case, I am happy to oblige. However, if you just want to hurl invective or attack me with petty name-calling, you can keep it.

In this age of social media, folks have opinions and feel the need to express them. That certainly is the case for me, so even when I vehemently disagree with what others have to say, I believe in their inherent right to share that knowledge/stupidity with the world. What I don't agree with is someone using that right to be intentionally incendiary and provocative, and then retreating into victimhood or going ghost when challenged to provide a defense.

A few months ago I offered what I felt was a rational counter-point to a statement made by a well-known conservative commentator. Because this person is a public figure, I had no expectation of a reply; yet, one of his followers felt the need to offer her rebuttal. Which was fine initially, as she suggested that I needed some education to support my statement. I responded with facts to demonstrate that I knew what I was talking about, to which she responded by calling me a libtard and stupid. But because I refuse to argue with folks like that, I dropped a parting piece of knowledge on her and then wished her a nice life.

That is why all of these calls for civility are disingenuous. If your best response to facts is to denigrate the person who offered them, then you're just trying to start some shit. And in the words of the late poet Michael Jackson:

Mama say, mama saw, ma ma coo saw
Mama say, mama saw, ma ma ca saw

I ain't scared of a good fight, but you won't come into my space and try to set the rules. My politics are not a secret, and I accept that reasonable people can disagree. But when you come on my page, expect a challenge. And if you can't rise to the occasion, then stay home.