I was thinking about the differences between how people talk anonymously and face-to-face, and why people can be willing to attack each other over a single comment on an online forum or Facebook. Many times I see people I know get worked up about a comment online, and angrily post back and forth with someone they don't know. The fact that the person posting is not face-to-face with the other person certainly gives a sense of being free from consequences. The flame wars and spitting of bile seems to escalate so quickly though. If you don't know the person you are angry at or being judgy towards, and your opinion of them is based on a comment on an online forum, what can be the reason for that? I wondered if another a reason for lowered inhibitions is the anonymity of the person being posted "at", lectured, cursed at, etc. If you can't see the person you are talking to and you don't know them, they can represent anyone you have pre-existing feelings towards. Just as you could imagine someone you are talking online with is your perfect match and soulmate, you could imagine they are the personification of evil. So once an online "entity" you are interacting with gets grouped in with the people you most hate and despise, then you have the right to direct all of your pent-up anger at them. Right?
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