Most of the time, this spot is reserved for upbeat messages, helpful information, or maybe to make folks aware of events going on around our area. This week is going to be a little different. This week I am going to have a little temper tantrum and speak my mind on what I think is one of the biggest issues with our society today: keyboard warriors.

A keyboard warrior is someone who is really brave and brazen on social media where they can rant, rave, and criticize while hiding behind a screen in the comfort of their home. These trolls roam social media just looking for something to criticize or throw their two cents in on. I am a staunch and devoted advocate of freedom of speech, and I recognize that even ignorant folks have the right to their opinion. However, there is a class of folks out there in cyber- land that take that freedom and stretch it like a rubber band on a watermelon.

This past week I saw some of these self-appointed kings and queens of public opinion criticize and mollify everything from a local school district, the physical aesthetics of the town I love, the highway construction, and a storm siren not sounding.

The most appalling to me was a social media “news” site that posted the graphic sexual details in a probable cause affidavit last week, airing the trauma that a young lady described in a sexual assault case. In my opinion, that site and the people who run it have absolutely no credibility and care only about the number of likes and page views they get instead of their community. I promise you will NEVER see that kind of content in the pages of your Tribune.

So, here goes. I have taken it upon myself in recent months to avoid confrontation at all costs and to seek peace whenever possible. I have done this at the urging of health professionals who have encouraged me to lessen my stress so as maybe not to blow a gasket. When your blood pressure is routinely around 200, you might want to listen to your doctor…so I have.

But, and I say this with some chagrin, a column in this space a week ago written by one of my daughters has spurred me to be a little more outspoken this week. That, and the fact that I am just more than a little tired of stupid people.

One of my favorite lines from a TV comedy I love goes, “One cries because one is sad. For example, I cry because others are stupid, and that makes me sad.”

You might say, Kenny, that is kinda harsh. You shouldn’t call people stupid. Well, to quote another famous line, “stupid is as stupid does.”

Now, let me clarify. I am not really saying that these people are stupid. They are just stupid leaning. Perhaps a better way to say it is that they are prone to say stupid things when in fact they are ill informed, ill advised, or just one of those people that are predisposed to be critical of everything and say mean things just to say mean things.

The old adage of ‘if you can’t say something nice, don’t say nothing at all’ ought to be the golden rule of social media, in my opinion. Social media has a great potential to be a place where the best things in our world are shared and the beauty and joys of life are seen. More often than not, it is the opposite. There are way more jeers than cheers. There are more posts throwing shade about a hamburger not being cooked right than there are posts about someone doing something to help their fellow man.

Wouldn’t it be great if there were social media pages dedicated to cheers only?

Sadly, keyboard warriors will be around as long as they have a platform. They were around on AOL, they remained in the days of MySpace, and are still here for Facebook, X, Insta, and every other platform out there. You know what is odd to me though? Almost every week in the paper on this page there is a little blurb about letters to the editor. I encourage letters to be sent in and make space for people to share their opinions with the community. Rarely do we receive one.

Finally, if I may, let me offer a little “sage” advice from an old man who has been around the block a few times, and deeply cares about the communities that we cover in this paper.

Find a reason to be positive. Find reasons to shine a light on the good stuff. There is a lot of good stuff going on around here. In fact, I saw one yesterday. Did you know that on Saturday, June 28, the whole world can go out to Matteson farms and pick ears of corn straight from the stalk for just .15 cents an ear. Matteson Farms does this every year and every year I think it is just the coolest thing since they figured out how to put orange sherbert on a push pop. These are the kinds of things that ought to blow up on social media.

And one more piece of advice for all the keyboard warriors out there…just shut up. Or as the younger folks say…”touch grass.”