Authored by Nick Kossovan via The Epoch Times,
There's more truth to the hatred, taboo beliefs, and raw emotions expressed on social media than we're willing to admit.
From morning to night, you and I practice the exhausting routine of self-control. We force a smile when our boss moves the goalposts. We stay silent when an acquaintance spews absurd conspiracy theories. We put up with rudeness, entitlement, petty demands, and people who seem determined to make our lives miserable.
We swallow what we'd really like to say because we learned early in adulthood that "go along to get along" is the price of admission to society. It's how we get through the day without losing friends, jobs, or teeth.
Then we unlock our phones, scroll through social media, or read the comments on an article, and suddenly those restraints don't seem quite so necessary. Within seconds, our carefully constructed mask of public politeness slips off. We leave comments that don't merely disagree; they're meant to decimate. We launch into rants about politicians, immigration, geopolitical crises, or the neighbor who wants to build a fourplex down the street. We say things to strangers that we'd never dream of saying while standing next to them in a grocery store.
Why?
The popular explanation is that social media has poisoned us. Algorithms feed us outrage, encourage tribalism, and turn otherwise decent people into aggressive keyboard warriors. There's truth to that. Social media companies have built enor
