Before downvoting, check the community.
If you fail to use the /s tag or specifically call out that your comment is sarcastic, I’m going to treat it as being earnest. I might ask if you’re being sarcastic, but I will downvote as though you are being earnest.
The /s tag not only clarifies, but it also confirms that you’re being sarcastic. A thing you cannot ordinarily convey via written text unless you specifically call it out. You can hint at it, readers can infer it, but you cannot convey it. To convey it, sans directly stating it, you would need to include a recording of you speaking the comment, which defeats the whole point of text chats.
“It definitely reads as sarcasm, you’re just missing it” So what? I’m neurodivergent. I barely get this shit in its normal, spoken context. Why should I be expected to understand the implied sarcasm in your text comment?
“Telling someone you’re being sarcastic ruins it” Unless your definition of sarcasm is just lying to someone’s face, you do indicate sarcasm when speaking. Via the exaggerated, deadpan tone you use. Something you can’t convey in written text unless you specifically call it out.
“I made it very clear via hyperbole that it was sarcasm” Have you talked to people? Your obvious, over-the-top, hyperbolic sarcasm could just be someone’s opinion taken whole cloth. In fact, you probably modeled your exaggeration AFTER a person. Can you see why, if I don’t know you, there’s no way to tell?
“I forgot the tag” cool, if I see the edit adding it back in, I’ll revert my downvote. Consider it the opportunity cost of forgetting.
“It doesn’t hurt anyone” Yes, it does. You give credence to your exaggerated position that you would never take because the people who think like that exaggerated position will point to your comment as proof that they have support. It’s why 4chan rebirthed nazism.
“I still won’t do it”. Then have fun with the downvote. You want to make the internet worse? I’ll be sure that you don’t get the internet points your brain craves.
Definitely an unpopular opinion, but it’s one that’s catching on for sure. Great post, no sarcasm.
For the record, there is actually no necessarily discernable difference between sarcasm and lying to someone’s face. People that are very sarcastic will often not adjust their delivery whatsoever. The whole point of sarcasm is to be somewhat plausible and convincing, after all.
The only real difference is in the motive to be humorous, which is just not necessarily discernable. This is why sarcasm is usually not used with complete strangers irl, since they won’t know the person well enough to necessarily detect it, unless you grossly exaggerate it. Which is basically the same as an irl /s, where you deliver it in either an exaggerated deadpan or an almost singsong fashion to make it very blatant. Even in these cases, the person will often offer a polite apology for using sarcasm with a stranger, since it’s kinda broadly felt that that’s just not a great idea.
Ultimately sarcasm is predicated on the idea that people’s casual words should not be trusted though, which is just generally good advice anyway. Trust systems, not people, unless you know them well. Words are simply too cheap, they’re as often a toy as they are some serious information transfer mechanism.
I honestly didn’t think this would be as unpopular as the responses make it seem. I used to be against using /s because “it makes it less fun” but way too many people get the wrong message. I decided to start using it because I want people to understand me correctly. It’s that the point of communicating with people?
IRL I try to be more over the top, but even then (like OP and others pointed out) if the person doesn’t know your baseline then they might think you are being serious. It has happened to me countless times.
I can agree with this statement for real life interactions, but online you can’t pick up the nonverbal cues.
Unpopular opinion:
So you can downvote. It’s OK. Downvotes are part of the communication. Downvotes don’t kill anybody.
I am allowed not to give a damn whether you understand my texts or not, or whether you downvote or not.
I set the /s when I feel like it, not when you need it.
Even if you are mod - these higher beings who do not have to explain or justify their shortcomings - yes, many of them lack understanding in about the same manner as you do.
As someone who doesn’t use the /s and regularly gets downvoted as a result, I’m less interested in your downvote and more interested in why anyone upvotes.
For example, if we’re discussing American healthcare and you’re arguing for universal healthcare because it makes sense, I’m likely to respond sarcastically with “But that’s socialism! In America, we’d rather pay and arm and a leg to die from preventable diseases than just secure healthcare! That’s true patriotism!”
Now, if you were to take that at face value, I’m curious as to who you think would genuinely argue for excessive payments to die from preventable diseases so blatantly. Literally no one does that. That’s not giving credence to an exaggerated position because it’s not an actual position anybody would take. But your reaction is beside the point, because I’m not interested in you.
I’m interested in the people who agree with my sarcastic position, often by tamping down the hyperbole, because they’re unreasonable. These are people I’m trying to catch with my vinegar honey pot. It might giving credence to their views long enough for them to respond positively to me, but after that…it’s all mudslinging. And if someone says they oppose universal healthcare because it’s socialist, well then I get to have being extremely sarcastic with them while you get downvote me.
