Under Construction - MHWA Retreat

I think things that people say on the internet are 100% of their thoughts and feelings about particular themes. I'll take Facebook as an example because it's the biggest social platform out there where no one shies away from anything. There are two reasons why they express their opinions: 1) they already knew they have some kind of opinion but were not completely aware it is how they think or feel and now are being prompted to express it when they read the news, the article, an image, a quote about something of their interest, and 2) they had formed unchanged opinion about a particular thing a long time ago, ever since they figured out they can have one and are expressing it without necessarily being asked to by the image, a quote, the news, etc. Let's say for example all the mess Trump created in your country. You mentioned to me about some people in your real-life coming to you, expressing their opinions and you can't believe that's what they actually think and believe in because they appeared differently before the election. Whole families divided I read. The truth is, they were always that way and only now are prompted to express the way they feel. People were expressing their opinions for a long time and now- with all social media- it only grew bigger not because they can necessarily hide behind the computer screen but because they are given a bigger platform and wider audience which is the main reason why people are expressing opinions: to be heard and to be heard loud and clear.

So, I don't believe that someone can be a different person online and offline. Yeah, maybe they won't share a lot of sensitive information with you if they don't know you for real (or some people won't even share sensitive info with those people who they know very well) but the core of such person is the same in both cases. If you are a bad person, for example, you will be bad with both parties and vice versa- if you are a good person in the core, you will be good with both parties- online and offline. You can't hide who you really are. It'll come up at some point even if you try to cover it.

P.S. I watched that movie "The Gift" last night and you know what was it all about. Doesn't matter how much you pretend to be good, you simply can't hide the real you for so long. Now, there are people who were good but, after experiencing something bad, they become bad as well but that's another theme, for some other time- if you had a bad experience with something/someone, how much did it affect you or did it turn your real-self into a different person or not? What about an abused person becoming an abuser himself? Just a thought.