It was a simple question…
RT @RyanWesleySmith: "All we need is Jesus."
And food, no? Water?—
Carnun Marcus-Page (@CarnunMP) April 18, 2013
But then this happened:
@ogada700 @CarnunMP @RyanWesleySmith Is this the part where you fall down and flap like a chicken?—
Jorita Groenewald (@JoritaGroenewal) April 18, 2013
(At least chickens have an excuse, eh?)
I learnt a lesson that day: ask a slightly sarcastic yet entirely reasonable question on a public forum, and you’re doomed to a timeline full of annoyed hysterical apologists.
None of what ensued was in any way ‘worse’ than the amazingly intellectual rebuttal of Ms Ogada, but it didn’t get much better. Calling for my exorcism aside, I was met with a barrage of the usual from the rest of ‘the usual’:
- The passive-aggressive ‘God loves you’.
- The patronising ‘read the Bible, do some research’.
And
- The flatly and demonstrably false ‘there is proof of God’s existence!’.
I knew I wasn’t going to convince any of these people, but I stood my ground nonetheless. There was a certain joy that came along with it all – it was fun to ruffle these particular feathers.
And I didn’t hide it either:
@AnnMarieTraynor You're welcome. But don't take it personally – I enjoy frustrating other people too
Plus, comedy can be powerful.—
Carnun Marcus-Page (@CarnunMP) April 18, 2013
Indeed it can. Just look at Bill Hicks, George Carlin, Ricky Gervais, Tim Minchin etc. Comedy is often one of the best ways to criticize bad ideas.
So, when these ideas find their way to you, by all means, laugh*.
Just don’t expect a sane response.
Carnun 
___
*At the ideas. Not the people.
