Prolific

It means reproducing freely, and I consider it a neutral word – neither positive nor negative. Yet, I most often encounter it in the context of positive expressions that connote abundance, bounty, and the like. Consider expressions such as prolific author, prolific composer, prolific fruit tree, prolific fields, and so on.

The word proliferate and its derivatives (proliferative, proliferating, proliferation), derived from similar Latin and French roots, is more often encountered in a negative context. In the clinical world, proliferation is most commonly encountered in the context of cancers – particularly those of the blood elements, cancers such as the leukemias and lymphomas, but just as applicable to solid tumors. The word itself almost implies a loss of regulation and normal, sane order. In the context of geopolitics, proliferation often occurs in the context of malign ideas and dangerous weapons – authoritarianism, white supremacy, fascism, nuclear weapons, wars of aggression, and the like.

In the contexts of computing and social media, proliferation is often mentioned regarding viruses, malware, malicious hacking, phishing, and the sharing of content that some of us may find undesirable. The first of these are almost universally reviled, but the last of them (undesirable content) depends on the recipient of the material. You may be offended by sexual imagery (show me a picture of Trump nekkid, and I’ll probably need an antiemetic), violence, certain political content, and so on. What you or I find offensive depends on our individual beliefs and values.

I, for one, find religious content particularly disturbing. Recently, I have noticed a proliferation of FB posts from pseudo-religious sites that pretend to be spreading the word of their almighty. They exhort the reader (me) to say Amen or some other incantation in order to assert my agreement that their deity cares about my welfare or will reward me in some particular way.

I find such posts offensive, and they leave me wanting to shower in order to remove the slimy patina of pseudo-religiosity. If the creators of these sites were truly religious individuals, they might ask for alms or prayers for the less fortunate here or abroad – people under attack from invading armies, the victims of natural disasters, the starving masses in areas of prolonged drought and crop failures, and the like. But no, they simply ask for an Amen as if their deity were going to use web tracking metrics to examine their FB pages to determine how many likes or Amens they had garnered.

I don’t have a deity – not a generic deity let alone a personal savior. I’m just here as a consequence of the confluence of many fortunate random events. How my life unfolds in the future doesn’t depend on whether I respond Amen to your idiotic post or whether anyone else makes that response on my behalf. My future and yours depend far more on whether we treat one another with respect and whether we reach out to each other when we are in need.

You needn’t respond with an Amen or anything like that because this isn’t that kind of post.