When it comes to the internet, everyone knows that no opinion is left unsaid, or—I should say—untyped. Matters of religion, gender, politics, and even on which Game of Thrones character deserves to sit on the Iron Throne, are widely debated as heated topics. For digital users, no topic is sacred. Nothing goes untouched.

Though this influx of shared perspectives on the web have definitely enriched current day-to-day conversations, I am noticing a common misconception that internet and media consumers are confused about, which is, and stick with me here, one does not have to completely agree with every element of an opinion based article. Because opinion based articles are based on the formulation of one individual’s… you’ve got it, opinions. In no way does the disagreement of ideals should ever lead, under any circumstances, to the social media shaming of an opinion based author.

After a consistent use of social media for the past… lifetime, I am becoming more and more aware and agitated by this common misconception. However, instead of writing a five paragraph Facebook post (which I myself wouldn’t even want to read) about my frustrations on this practice of shaming opinion piece writers, I thought I would do what any logical and rational person would do—educate these particular individuals and readers who are just simply, wrong. The path to education is a long and harrowing journey, but because I, in my  opinion, am a nice but impatient person, I will just be giving you a four-point guide on how to react to an opinion based article you disagree with. Through this guide, maybe, just maybe, we will all be able to make the internet a more understanding and humane medium for the exchange of educated opinions.

*WARNING*

I am by no means using this article as a way to publicly shame individuals, nor am I trying to infringe on any right to free speech. My ability to write this what can be only described as a ranting blog post, which is protected by that same right which we are all guaranteed as citizens of this amazing country. However, if you post something insulting and ignorant, you are automatically handing me, on a silver platter, the opportunity to use satire and sarcasm to make fun of you. That’s the American Dream Baby!

Without further ado, here’s How To: React to Opinion Based Articles You Disagree With

1.    Read, read, read, take a break, and then read some more

There is nothing more infuriating in this world than a person who posts a novel long opposing response to an article they only read the first paragraph of. If you want to comment your disagreement of an article, which you have every right to do so, make sure you’re reading more than just the title. Most of the time, the titles are put there as an attention grabber do not reflect the actual opinion of the writer. Making assumptions, in consequence, will make you look like a little silly if you are taking an hour out of your day to write out a full opposition to something an opinion piece writer didn’t even state—which you would have known if you’d taken seven minutes to read it entirely. So make like Santa, check the article not once, but twice!

And because I’m fully expecting maybe only a quarter of readers to have made it this far into the article, here’s a little fun fact:

To have your picture taken on the first ever camera, an individual would have to stand still for 8 hours for the picture to come out. Can you imagine 8 hours? If that was still the case today, there would be a lot let less puppy filter selfies in the world.

2. *Plays State Farm Jingle* CAN I GET A FACT CHECK?

“Hey now, is this chick seriously saying that we not only have to read a full article multiple times, but also look up facts to support my opinion?” Yes, unfortunately, I am stating that. I know it is a massive strain on you to open a new tab that automatically opens up a Google page that literally can give every resource of information on any possible topic in the entire world, but it has to be done. The point of opinion based articles is to provide a challenge for both the writer and reader to further educate themselves on topics that we may have very little knowledge of before it was posted. So if you want to school some overly-pompous writer who uses words like ‘‘pompous’’ in their article, get your facts straight first.

3. Don’t personalize or, even worse, demonize

If you’re like me and attempted to take half a semester’s worth of debate/law classes freshmen year of college, you would know (from the first day of class you) the one thing that invalidates any educated argument: overly-emotional and anecdotal statements as a base for your entire debate. This makes an individual appear lazy, as if they didn’t care enough to look up facts to support an (overly)emotional story. I’m not saying never use personal accounts, in many cases the use of personal stories and connections can help illustrate your point, but these personal connections should be used as the icing on the cake and not the actual physical cake itself.

Going further with that point, never, and I mean, NEVER, try to demonize a writer because they have an opinion that strays away from yours. Unless they are directly stating that they want all Corgi Golden Retrievers vanquished from the face of the earth, there is no need to insult the opinion writer for just believing in something enough to put key-to-google doc to write out and publish it. Contrary to your belief that publicly insulting the opinion writer makes you some hybrid of a 21st century freedom fighting crusade leader of social media, it actually makes you look like a middle-school bully with severe emotional problems.

4. Remember, they are human, too

At the root of all of this, just remember, that behind your computer screen, behind the article that you ferociously disagree with, is a human being. They have emotions, and as all us millennials make sure to keep emphasizing to present day media, they have feelings. If you disagree with something about an article and want to make a comment about it, that is completely fine, that is your right as a digital age individual. However, before you start insulting their lack of intelligence, experience, age, or whatever fill in excuse you found on a Baby Boomers Against Millennials forum you can find, just remember that your comments have just as much of an effect on the world as the opinion article that was written.

So, as this piece comes to a close, I wish all of you the best on your social media endeavors. Spread good vibes, treat your fellow user humanely, and to all my haters who wish to comment below, as my good buddies Simon and Garfunkel would state, enjoy my “Sound of Silence.”