Reaction Emoji Used on News Stories Has Me Questioning Society

This is not a debate of whether or not one of Facebook's reaction emojis should exist. It's not even a plea to stop using it or have it removed from the social media empire. This is about acknowledging that, in my opinion, the soulless of society are easily traceable through the click of one button. Read this clearly, this is not a plea to remove the button.

Facebook is frequently making updates to its virtual world, some good and some bad. When FB announced it would be adding more reaction buttons aside from 'Like" and whichever else was available at that time I thought, "Hey, that'll be a fun addition." I wasn't being facetious then but now, if I bring up this emoji and it sounds pleasant, know that I'm being sarcastic as hell. Truthfully, the laughing emoji reaction on Facebook has me questioning society.

The laughing button/reaction was launched in 2015 and its original purpose has changed so much in a short period of time. The button is now a way to identify toxicity. It's the identification of narrow-minded, racist, sexist, hate-filled, homophobic, flat-eathers. If this just made your head explode with anger at the previous sentence I do not apologize. It may not be a fact but it is very close. How can someone argue that opinion?

You might be shaking your head and scoffing at this point but you're still here so let me quickly explain. I would provide examples but there is no need to present validation for this argument. All you need to do is scroll through our Facebook or that of any news station in Rockford. COVID-19 death stories = laughing reaction, race-related stories = laughing emoji, gender rights = laughing emoji, LGBTQ inclusion/rights = laughing emoji. Do I need to continue or should we take a deeper dive into other subjects like bullying, religion, etc.? No, it shouldn't be needed at this point.

After thinking about it, I should be thanking those who react to anything other than comedy and cuteness with the laughing emoji, specifically related to the lists above. This is a great way to filter those who I don't want even remotely close to me, personally or professionally. Those who argue the point of this article have no right to be upset if someone "laughs" at an article, story, or obituary involving a loved one or their own really bad personal news.