I’m scrolling through my Facebook wall feed and trying to
pick my way through the countless Karpal Singh posts. I’ve already seen the
pictures, been briefed of his demise, did my mourning and now want to know what
other things are going on in the world around me. That’s okay. And so is handling
the death of a publicly known and loved figure in your own way and time.
And so, I leapfrog my attention over the changed display
pictures, lengthy memorial posts and side-line bickering, trying to get to the
meat of the day when I see this post:
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| “Switched on fb to see many Karpal Singh bandwagon motherfuckers. Many of you probably didn't know much about him till only after he died, even me. But there's no need to suddenly post so much shit about him, acting as though you followed all his acts and fights. Stop having the need to want to impress other on fb by pretending to be something you're not or know something you don't. What do you achieve by proving to all these people through social media? It's the real world we live in, so impress those around you in real life. I guess maturity just takes longer for some people. All you bandwagon fuckers, you know who you are, and I couldn't give a flying two fucks about your butt hurt.” |
And he isn’t the only one, judging by the 51* Likes the post
received and some of the comments below.
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| "This had to be said though. Word!" |
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| “This post made my day” |
First things first:
is this sort of hate new? Hell to the no. Remember when Michael Jackson
passed away in 2009 and the internet blew up in everyone’s faces with posts,
statuses, and pictures commemorating the King of Pop?
Radio stations started playing his songs non-stop. His
albums skyrocketed through the roof and broke charts down into whimpering,
weeping messes. 13 year old girls heard those songs and rushed to buy them off
iTunes. Suddenly it seemed like everyone had been best friends with Michael
Jackson their whole life.
Like, how dare they? How dare they realise that they liked
his songs? How dare they feel a connection to his work or resonate with the
things he said? How dare those assholes pass those messages along to their
friends or people they knew would appreciate his work?
But back to Mr Angry Facebook Guy and the countless others
out there who agree with him. I think that sort of reaction is less in response
to people supporting Karpal Singh, and more to the fact that people are
supporting him now.
This reaction to the extra support is very on-par with Geek
Gatekeeping, where people (a majority of which are girls) are held under the
most scrutinizing light, quizzed, and prodded and, if they fail the test, harassed,
ridiculed, and insulted for being a “fake geek”.
Is this making your skin crawl? Mine is. And no
one should feel that way about their culture.
People like Angry Facebook Man may have a ready audience,
primed to mark those “fake Khairy supporters” with an F to maintain the sanctity
of their congregation, but it is not an audience one should cultivate.
Sure, people will like things for a variety of reasons, some
of those reasons being popularity, or to fit in, or to appear a certain way
towards others, or to attract someone of the opposite sex. Whatever. It could
be because they genuinely do not care, or because they have just discovered
Karpal Singh and do not have someone to explain things to them.
And instead of pointing them in the right direction, people
like Angry Facebook Man feel more accomplished tearing them down for not
knowing the right things, right quotes, at the right time. This is not a love
for the man or respect for the things he has to say. This is a misguided,
shock-and-anger-filled reaction to having someone you look up to taken away
from you and having so many strangers coming in and claiming his memory as
their own. I get that. In a twisted way, I get that.
But I personally have no patience to people who respond with
hate and judgement and venom. So, as Khairy so eloquently puts it - Shut up. Just, shut
up.**
*51 Likes during the time of screen-shotting. Now it's 70. Hurrah for kind and gentle spirits.
** Author’s note: Those last words may have been a little EXTREMELY
harsh. As much as people try to make it, the internet should NEVER be about
shutting others up. The internet (his Facebook post, this article, all of it) should be about having a nuanced and
intellectual discussion, and I’m glad to see that that did happen. I was in an
upset state of mind and thought the words made me sound edgy and cool, but this
only serves to elucidate my point:
Angry Facebook Man isn’t someone you are; it’s someone you become. Sometimes, he is Angry Facebook
Man, sometimes you’re Angry Facebook man, and sometimes I’m Angry Facebook man.
The problem isn’t just with individuals, but with our attitude as a whole.
*51 Likes during the time of screen-shotting. Now it's 70. Hurrah for kind and gentle spirits.
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