Gossiping and slander have been around for thousands of yrs.But it seems it has taken on a different dynamic. Now I have been incarcerated for 18 1/2 yrs.But Ive seen when this dynamic started to change. When social media became popular. When I was younger, most people would mind their own business.Now people feel as though they have a right to get into your business. Everyone wants to be trending, or they want to be followed. Or to see how many likes they have. People are so nosey, they follow people daily that they have never seen before in their life. Let alone had a conversation with them.Social media for sure has its benefits, but it can also be a stumbling block and an obsession for some. I know people who are constantly on Facebook, Twitter, or instagram. Because they are afraid that they are going to miss something.At 1 Thessalonians 4:11:make it your aim to live quietly and mind your own business and to work with your own hands. Those are things of the past. Everybody wants to be seen now.And everyone wants their business on front street. That’s why the mob was so successful for so many years. They truly lived by the code of silence omerta. The code of the streets or g-code,as we use to call it.Mind your own business, and dont talk about things you see,and never tell anyone your business. And this social media way of thinking has made its way into every walk of life, including prison life. Just like in the free world you have people that have nothing to do with their time, so they troll the internet looking for things to follow or gossip about. Their are inmates who are a part of inmate.com.who troll the entire compound looking for gossip or a story to pass on.It’s sickening to see. And when they can’t find a story to tell, they will make one up. This happened to me yesterday. One of the trolls from inmate.com came up to me trying to spread the latest gossip. I really wasn’t trying to hear it, so I was real short with him and was like I don’t believe it. So he leaves and comes back at a later time with a different twist on the story. First off,I know that none of what he is saying is true.And its sad how people will spread something and try and force it to be true,regardless to what it effect it could have on someone. I wanted to slap his teeth down his throat. I hate the spreading of lies and gossip, because that’s how I ended up in prison for a crime I didn’t. A friend told me something the other day that’s so true. She said no matter what, some people are going to just want to believe whatever they hear about you.No matter if its true or not.And those words are so true. We can’t change minds. We can only control our actions and words.People no longer respect boundaries when comes to personal business. Some one could meet you today and would ask you something personal that a long time friend wouldn’t even ask you. Social media has made people socially retarded. People are so use to communicating on a cellphone, laptop, or tablet, that they don’t know how to read body language. They can’t seem to tell when their making someone uncomfortable. Or when they have crossed a line. Even though I have given up the street life COMPLETELY, I still live by the principles of minding my own business and not running my mouth. As long as doesn’t affect me and the people I care about. It’s not my business.
ARCHIE WILDER
DOC #414-917
