We Need a Spam Filter for Real Life — Here’s why
Ever check your spam folder? Go do it, and see what you find for today….
Here’s a snapshot of what I’ve received in the past few hours:
Now imagine that all those emails were not routed to SPAM, and I had to filter past them every time I opened my inbox. Sifting through as I try to live life and get work done.
Noisy, obnoxious (often sexual) interruptions while I’m tying to get things done. Kinda like… catcalling.
Walking around on the streets feels a lot like wading through an inbox full of spam.
Every morning as I open my email (read: walk to work) I have to delete a bunch of brash, attention seeking, blinking messages (read: ignore all the comments as I walk past).
Men get a handy-dandy spam filter for walking around their world. Installed at birth. Free of charge.
No vagina? Great, here’s your spam filter for life. Enjoy!
Got a vagina? Well, spam is just attention and you like attention, right?
No individual message is really the end of the world, but all the endless filtering I have to do makes me not want to use email (read: walk around outside).
How much would you enjoy using email without a spam filter? Don’t you think you’d try to avoid it?
Men, you don’t know. You don’t feel it. You don’t have to wade through all that junk to live your lives. You don’t have to think twice at every instance—if I accidentally click on a message, I could invite violence on my machine, a virus installed, an attempt to steal my data or corrupt my experience.
Opening your inbox is safe. Your inboxes are pretty much filled with relevant, respectful messages — sure, sometimes sales pitches or someone pulling politics, and your guard is up for that. But usually the pings you get are innocuous and reasonable: a friend saying “hi” on the street, a coworker walking by, someone pointing out that your backpack is unzipped, etc.
Time solves everything, right? As we women age men start leaving us alone.
One day—gradually—I’ll get a spam filter installed. I’m looking forward to that day….
