Hi John,

What were you doing in 2009? Creating collages on Myspace? Recovering from the Great Recession? Graduating college? Attending middle school? Purchasing your first iPhone?

In 2009 social media was in its infancy. Instagram wasn’t yet launched, and Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube had only just started to gain widespread use. You might say we didn’t have the polarized discourse of recent years, and we didn’t describe it with terms like “tribalism” and “echo chambers.”

But Kerry Patterson was sensitive to a hidden danger. He talks about it in today’s article, published 14 years ago.

Kerrying On: Hidden Dangers
by Kerry Patterson

One day as my father sped along the local expressway, I noticed from my position in the back seat that my door was slightly ajar. At ten years old, I did what any kid would do; I grabbed the handle and tried to give the door a quick open and close. Unfortunately, the very second the latch released, the door violently flew open and stretched me out like Gumby—as I perilously extended between the seat and door.
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He that has the worst cause makes the most noise.
 
—Proverb