Stop all this hate?

As I was browsing social media the other day, I saw the most baffling post -- so much so that I'm still perplexed by it. A hometown acquaintance posted something crass enough that I don't actually feel comfortable repeating it because, frankly, the opinion doesn't deserve any weight. However, I'll share a few of the contradictory hashtags: #growup #getoveryourself #stopallthishate.

The post in itself was offensive, hands-down. If you don't believe me, I'll just tip you off that it included the terms "butt hurt" and "vagasil" (spelled incorrectly). Although I didn't agree with the opinion or the means of conveying it, I didn't do a double-take until I got to the hashtag #stopallthishate. After reading one of the more hateful posts I'd seen in quite some time, the irony of the hashtag was not lost on me. 

I didn't take the bait and respond to the post, although maybe I should have. Some posts seem clearly intended for shock value, and nobody was really nibbling on what she was dangling in front of us. The thing I'm hung up on, though, is whether she truly thought her post was furthering her desire to #stopallthishate. There was some major cognitive dissonance within the post, and I simply can't understand how the same individual could have typed the entire post. 

So, to the real question at-hand: Are people getting more courageous on social media, or am I more in-tune to something that has been going on for a long time? It seems that there is more disparity than ever between what a person says on social media vs. what a person would have the nerve to say in real life. However, maybe I'm just fortunate that I don't interact with many hateful people in my day-to-day offline life.

The whole #stopallthishate fiasco got me thinking about The Four Agreements, a book that I would recommend for anyone and everyone. The book contains agreements to make with yourself in order to live a happy life. "Be impeccable with your word" is one of the agreements, and it encourages people to use the power of their words in the direction of truth and love. I can't even articulate how much I love this concept because it's a good filter to consider before speaking or typing. 

I want to point people in the direction of truth and love -- to #stopallthishate.