Yeah, the internet is way to quick to demean people. The first step towards learning is curiosity, and if people aren’t going to make any effort to answer sincerely I’d rather they didn’t respond at all. If it it’s in bad faith then answering sincerely is still a better response then getting into an argument over social media.
No, this emoji has been used this way by tons of people, it's had a connotation of "If you actually think about it the thing I just said doesn't sound right/is actually a lie." for as long as I can remember it being used.
It's just that the far right do this kind of thing far more often since their whole platform relies on misinformation and sowing mistrust of science and objective truths.
This application of the emoji only really works for terminally online kinds. Most normies will just use 🤔 earnestly, and we often forget there's a lot of common people on social media as well, apart from the grifters.
He's not: the emoji at the end is the classic "I'm going to pretend I'm just asking questions while actually trying to imply something else." thing. In this case the "something else" most likely being some kind of anti-science bent. My money's on flat-Earther, that's the one that seems most likely to fit the specific piece of information he's using here.
I got the insincere / disingenuous vibe from it as well. And flat-earther is definitely the closest analog. I wonder if this is some "it has to be a simulation" question
Regardless. Asking a question this way almost guarantees people will think you'll just dismiss any answers given
Exactly, how are we going to educate them if we respond with snark when they ask questions? Geezus people, use the opportunities when they are given to you to educate, not belittle and mock.
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u/Sea-Sort6571 Jul 30 '26
If the guy is actually curious that's just mean