How to deal with neighsayers on social media

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I'm on a FB cycling group that has a couple of members who talk down to people. They're both middle aged guys with something to prove and apart from them the group has a really friendly vibe.

I really enjoyed it when several of the younger members told one of them to STFU last week. He tried to wriggle out of it with a bit of gaslighting and denial but he's not been back since

Has anyone dealt with people among their network of "Facebook friends?" Do you know the ones who you barely know seem to think they have a right to criticize you for having your own opinion on things?

It’s easy to speak freely when you are safely behind your screen.

It can be interesting to hear the point of view of others, but it can be much more pleasant to focus on positive mutual interests instead.

I think it’s helpful to remember that you will never change another person’s opinion. If someone is rudely discussing personal matters with you without invitation (religion, politics, money), you could just change the subject. Over time, they should learn that it is pointless to bother you about delicate subjects.

You ride them.

A crop and a saddle, and occasionally showing them a bottle of glue and winking before asking again for cooperation.

The "Mute" and "Block" buttons are powerful tools for combating trolls and malcontents that infest every corner of the internet. So is the "log out" button on the website or app interface, and the power button on your device.

What's great about this is that circumventing mutes/blocks through the creation of different accounts is usually a violation of terms of service, either through rules banning sockpuppeting or targeted harassment. Reporting accounts guilty of this will usually result in sanction being taken, sometime up to and including an IP ban.

And of course, going around bans, logouts, and power-offs by pursuing others across multiple sites and even into meatspace can sometime be dealt with through the courts or law enforcement.

Or, if any of these measures are too severe for your taste, just move along.

Just delete them. Why keep that negativity in your life. Only have who you want on your friends list.

I only have three people on Facebook who aren't family members.

I wouldn't allow anyone that I "barely know" on my Facebook, or anyone I'd never met.

Definitely block and / or unfriend them.