Letter: Verbally attacking someone online not a mature reaction
Not too long ago a student at Western Washington University posted an article to the Odyssey concerning the Richland High School Bombers and questioned if a “Bomber” is really an appropriate mascot for anything. Frankly, I don’t care about the mascot in the slightest, I am not at all concerned with it.
However, I am concerned with the awful reaction she got from an opinion piece. It was ridiculous. This piece may not have been a popular opinion, but it was well-written, thought out and detailed. I read the comments and she was being ripped apart and terrorized by a lot of people who clearly didn’t even read the entirety of the article. It was sickening. She received death threats and threats to her family over an opinion piece.
If you saw this article and were immediately enraged to the point of just being a jerk to a 20-year-old voicing her personal opinion on social media, then you really need to reevaluate your priorities. If you think verbally attacking someone online is a reasonable, mature reaction to hearing something you don’t agree with, you need to grow up. There is no scenario where that is acceptable behavior. Shame on you.
Stephanie Lee Demetreon, Richland
This story was originally published July 15, 2017 at 12:18 PM with the headline "Letter: Verbally attacking someone online not a mature reaction."