Antisocial Media

Sometimes I wonder if I need better friends, at least on Facebook.

Frankly, some of the things that earn the endorsement of people on social media are mind-boggling. In one instance, I learned of an Alabama legislator who is apparently (a) gay and (b) threatening to publicly expose the marital infidelity of her colleagues unless they get on board with supporting gay marriage. The reason – somehow they are hypocrites, or something.

Alabama's only openly gay legislator is putting her anti-gay colleagues on notice: If they keep espousing family values rhetoric as a reason to oppose marriage equality, she'll start making their marital infidelities public.

"I will not stand by and allow legislators to talk about 'family values' when they have affairs, and I know of many who are and have," wrote state Rep. Patricia Todd (D) on Facebook over the weekend, as reported by the TimesDaily in Alabama. "I will call our elected officials who want to hide in the closet out."

What is her reasoning, other than overweening self-righteousness?

Todd's post came after a federal judge ruled Friday that Alabama's ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional. She told The Huffington Post that she decided to issue her threat after reading some of the anti-gay rhetoric coming from certain elected officials in the state.

"If certain people come out and start espousing this rhetoric about family values, then I will say, 'Let's talk about family values, because here's what I heard.' I don't have direct knowledge, because obviously I'm not the other person involved in the affair. But one thing you would never hear about me is that I ever cheated on a partner or had an affair," said Todd.

Shut up, she explained. So why is this okay?  Oh, she hates "hypocrisy."

"One thing I'm pretty consistent on is I do not like hypocrites," she added. "If you can explain your position and you hold yourself to the same standard you want to hold me to, then fine. But you cannot go out there and smear my community by condemning us and somehow making us feel less than, and expect me to be quiet."

I'm not sure how opposing gay marriage is smearing a community, but we'll leave that aside. And while I doubt there's very much that keeps a person with this particular worldview quiet, let's consult a familiar source, the Merriam-Webster dictionary, to determine what she's doing:

But it's totally okay if you're blackmailing a "hypocrite," apparently

And on my FB feed yesteday, the linked article was posted at least three times, with comments like "you go, girl!" and "why wait? Just do it anyway!" and "great idea!" It's kinda disheartening.