Fergus Finlay: Queen's death and jailing of Enoch Burke reveals worst of Twitter

The fact is that social media — and especially Twitter — can’t deal with big stuff

Enoch Burke, centre, arriving at the High Court from Mountjoy Prison. His refusal to use the pronoun that one of his students wanted is absolutely inexplicable. Picture: Collins Courts

It’s hard to imagine anything in the world that Britain's Queen Elizabeth and Enoch Burke could possibly have in common. But actually, there were two things. They both dominated the news cycle nationally and globally. And they both managed to drive the world of Twitter mad.

Twitter is a mad world anyway. Every time you post something you have to be prepared to see your reputation torn to shreds, your personality mocked, your intellect (such as it is) questioned and dismissed, and your appearance jeered at. There’s the other side to social media of course — and that’s what I value — it can be a great place to start a decent discussion about stuff, even the occasional lively argument.