بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
السلام عليكم و رحمة الله
"Kata-kata indah di bibir mesra
Mungkinkah dusta jangan terpedaya
Indah kata bukan pada ucapannya
Tetapi pada benar tujuannya"
- Kata-kata, Firdaus
Words.
Easier said than to be held accountable for it.
Whether we say it in real life to someone, or type it out online, there's always a risk of it being misinterpreted or misunderstood. Especially when it is taken out of context.
The danger of spreading words around has become easier now with the internet.
No more is there words being spread from one mouth to another.
Spreading words, true or false, is just one click away.
Share it.
Retweet it.
Copy paste it.
Send it.
An individual I know had a terrible experience with this. I won't go into detail as it may expose his/her identity. Basically, this person posted something online, and some people misunderstood it. Even after giving an explanation/clarification, some individuals just would not accept it and started to spread hateful words about this person.
It started from a hashtag on Twitter, and then spread like wildfire to different social networking platforms in just a matter of hours.
The consequence? That person received numerous backlash, hate comments, and was even expelled from school.
The worse thing is, he/she didn't even commit any wrongdoing. It was simply a misunderstanding. But of course, when it is just one person against a hundred or thousand of other people, that one person loses. Even when they are right.
Hence, lessons that can be learnt from this experience are:
1) Before posting something, always double, triple, even quadruple check the content. Ask for an unbiased and objective second opinion from someone. If your content is highly controversial, best not post in online. Unless that is your goal- then by all means, go ahead. :)
2) Before sharing a video, a tweet, a post, etc, always check and clarify. If spread falsely, you might hurt someone, some group of people, affect their daily lives and activities. Your action may cause psychological and/or emotional pain to someone. Always check and clarify.
-- Especially for Islamic rulings, and dalil. Double check the sources to see if it is true and authentic. You might affect someone's daily ibadah and iman by spreading false hadith or Quranic verses.
3) Be responsible, be polite, and be open minded. Different people experience different things, and therefore see the world differently. Take the time to explain and clarify nicely if someone misunderstands your content. Be open-minded and accept the fact that differing opinions and perspectives are normal. As long as it does not go against what Allah has limited for us, it should be fine.
4) Do not assume. Always clarify if unsure. This applies for both online, and real life conversations.
May this be a lesson and reminder to me, and to you my dear readers.
If there are any errors, do inform me. I am merely human and I err. :)
Allahua'laam.
Assalaamu'alaikum.