Not being extreme means you're always the bad guy. (@Shnikkles @psychicpebble )

Recent example, among many:

I was labeled by some as a SJW, because I was against angered gamers posting nudes of Zoe Quinn because I thought it was distracting from the cause of shedding light on biased journalism, while giving Quinn supporters ammunition to justify their blanket judgment of the gaming community.

I was labeled a misogynist and a bigot for taking issue with biased response articles void of fact with a clear intent to incite anger from the gaming community in order to back up their claims of riotous mobs. I'd made no mention of Zoe or feminism.

I was labeled a dick sucker for tweeting a friend about how I believed extremists on both sides were cherry-picking specific comments in order to "prove" their points and rally support.

If you don't pick a side, the extremists are going to assign you one. You're either with them all the way, or you're against them. What really frustrates me, is that I believe both sides are fully aware of how they are playing on the emotions of their audiences and using that as leverage to further their personal agendas and snuff out any opposing views, no matter how calm or sound or logical or genuine in its attempt to create a dialogue. "CALM AND LOGICAL? LOOK AT THIS! YOU CALL THIS CALM AND LOGICAL??!! PFFFT" ... is a common deflection, pointing at examples from opposing extremes, completely ignoring and avoiding a civil discussion from those who just want everyone to stop shouting and fucking talk.

There are many cases of this happening at this moment, far beyond the twitter-sphere. ISIS, Ferguson, the White House... and in many cases, it seems apparent that unless you're willing to completely give in to one side, believe completely and with no doubt or debate that the side you chose is the right one, the only one ... no one cares what you think, because you're not "right" enough or "wrong" enough to garner their attention. But as a general default... yer wrong.


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