A reader and a friend has talked to me a few times about my column.

He has said he likes them, he agrees with some of what I say and disagrees with other things I say. He also said, ‘I can’t believe columns like yours are still printed.’

This statement kind of blew me away.

We didn’t get into why he said this because we were in a public place with a lot of people walking around us, plus, I knew why.

It’s because I’m allowed to speak my opinion.

I’m not muted.

I can think freely and put it into words.

I can then debate, friendly I hope, with him, you, or any other who disagrees. At the same time, share our experiences and thoughts if we do agree.

It’s because I’m not scared to have thoughts and share them.

It also blows my mind because I know he said his comment because we’re in a world where this column is an exception instead of the standard, like it used to be.

In the cancel culture, the everyone pouts about everything, the entitlement era, and the we’re scared to be different or unique phase our culture has found itself in, people who talk, write, or share their brain in some sort or fashion, are the minority.

I wish I knew why.

We can identify pieces of it such as social media, pandemic isolation (which also blows my mind this is still a thing four or five years later), and the dynamic of being afraid to be wrong or never being wrong.

Social media has given everyone a voice, which is great, but not everyone knows how to use it. I see comments on posts all the time where it seems like the replier doesn’t really have a legitimate debate or a clue of what the original subject of the post was about, but is nasty, demeaning, and insulting.

In turn, the poster is angry and either insults in return or simply stays away from the conversation because it’s not worth their time to defend themselves. What could be a cool chat sharing different perspectives and helping two people grow or understand, becomes one of millions of daily social media conversation fatalities.

It then continues in the future because some people don’t want to share their thoughts because of the comments they may get if they put it out there.

Why be belittled or infuriated because people would rather fight, bicker, whine, point fingers rather than have a conversation.

This forms virtual isolation which is similar to the isolation COVID-19 caused. Without being around people, we forgot how to talk or how to care about other’s feelings because when you’re alone nothing else matters except how you feel or think yourself.

And when we got back together, instead of being joyous we could be around people, it was more about the annoyances we didn’t have to put up with when we were alone. Why be around someone and hear their opinions you may not agree with when you can stay home or be alone with your own thoughts no one is debating.

In 2025, we all do way too many things. I may be a little guilty of everything I’m talking about, but this is the one I’m the most pointing a finger at myself.

More often than not, we’re juggling schedules with work, family, friends, hobbies, community efforts, and entertainment on an every day, every hour, every minute basis where we can’t get anything done.

We get lost in those worlds, which besides family and friends, doesn’t really involve anyone else or takes away from indulging in conversation for the sake of conversation. I can’t tell you the last time my sisters and I have actually interacted on an intellectual, dialogue level.

My last point can be pointed out in the rest of them.

There are few words more negative than wrong.

No one wants to be wrong, and more seriously, no one wants to be told they’re wrong.

We can reason to ourselves why we’re right about almost anything, and in the individual’s mind, it’s a great idea or an amazing thought. But if someone else has a different mindset, they can always tell you why you’re wrong with the polar opposite reasoning.

Then you start to think your ideas are not good or don’t have merit.

Doubt sinks in.

You start questioning everything you believe.

I’m not saying this is everyone, about everything, but it does happen.

This makes people not want to talk or share.

A conversation isn’t always talking, the other half is hearing. If someone thinks they’re always right, they’re not listening, hearing, or trying to understand you anyway. They’re waiting for a spot to tell you why they’re right and why you’re wrong.

Every situation is looped into a vicious cycle where they all feed off of each other as sensible options to why writing a column or a similar act seems weird, different, or crazy.

Who knows what an answer is?

Maybe you’ll disagree with this column, send in a letter to the editor, and I’ll be canceled.

Or maybe we can chat and unmute ourselves.