Didn’t Read : Just Reacting

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. I’ve been a professional writer and science communicator for almost ten years now (starting in 2014), and I’ve learned an awful lot in that time. As if with anything worth doing, the learning curve has been steep, and the lessons have been hard. One of the hardest has been learning how to deal with people and their feedback.

And by that, I am referring to the comments section.

Don’t get me wrong. I like people as individuals. I’m not a total misanthropist. But when things become open to the public, you start to notice certain things. And if there’s one thing I’ve noticed, it’s that people leave comments ALL THE TIME without having read a single word you wrote. I’ve decided to call this phenomenon by a helpful abbreviation:

DR:JR — Didn’t Read:Just Reacting

You can spot this easily enough based on a few indications. For starters, people pulling a DR:JR will generally post something in relation to the title. Always, and I mean always, they will be taking issue with what they think the title implies. Let me give you an example. Every time I’ve posted something on the subject of terraforming or humans living beyond Earth, there will be several people remarking:

• “Shouldn’t we fix Earth first?”
• “Let’s stop ruining Earth before we ruin somewhere else.”
• “We can’t even take care of Earth. How can we settle (insert astronomical body here)?”

This whole false equivalence drives me nuts, but I still take the time to address it every single time I write something on the subject. As a hero of mine said, “solving for space solves for Earth.” It takes time to wade through all the ways in which space benefits life on Earth. But people reacting like this aren’t even bothering to

Second, they’re likely to argue a point that you yourself included in the piece as if you yourself didn’t consider it. At times, it will even be something as blatant as quoting something (like a source or a definition) you included in the piece. This can be an in-full or in-part thing. There were times someone read the first few paragraphs and then slammed me for not mentioning anything about X (except that I did just a few paragraphs later!) But most of the time, it’s clear they didn’t read anything because their comments don’t address anything but the title itself.

But what really takes the cake is when people try to rebut what you are saying by posting something else you wrote — not as a “you said differently in this article,” but as a “this guy disagrees with you” kind of thing. Hilarity would ensue as others would write in the comments section, “Dude, this guy wrote that!” At times, I’ve replied myself, saying, “Buddy, look at the byline. That’s my name. Take a minute to compose yourself, and then feel free to come right back.”

To be fair, commenting without reading is hardly a sin. We’ve all done it at some point, I’m sure. But what bothers me is how so many offenders will deny everything and claim they totally read what you wrote but persist in arguing about what you did or didn’t say. I know; why engage, right? It’s dumb! But the sad truth is, it was generally because I knew the person and was surprised they would take issue with my work without giving it due consideration.

It’s a simple concept, isn’t it? If you see an article or post that inspires you to react, shouldn’t you at least be clear on what it’s actually saying? And, if you commented without reading, at least have the guts and the integrity to admit as much. Don’t keep arguing your case out of pride or a sense of your own rightness. This is good advice for us all. Trust me. I’ve been on both sides of this enough to know what I’m saying!