Why I write comments online
I get really upset seeing people's unkind comments on Facebook. I read a lot of local news, shared on Facebook, and the comment sections can be rough.
I engage a lot because I want to change people's minds.
But I realized I was trying to think of the "best thing" to say to ... change Nicole's mind.
On a post about all-gender bathrooms, Nicole commented that there are only two genders & I said how they're nice for for male enbys who wear dresses. She said "You mean crossdressers?"
"F*** You" I thought. No no. Breathe. And I started thinking about the "right" thing to say, thrice finding a "better" way to make my argument.
But why do I want to change her mind? What do I actually want?
Policy. In this case, I don't want nonbinary people to lose freedom in public life, nor to be erased from history.
That's it. I don't care if she calls me a cross-dresser, long as she respects my freedoms.
So I basically told her that, and I feel good about it. I feel good about it because I actually cut straight to the point.
I didn't argue with her about "crossdresser" or go on about educating her or anything.
I told her that I hope she won't support policies that take away my freedom, and that she won't support banning teaching about nonbinary people in history.