Venting Is Not a Social Power Move

It’s Survival

Let’s get one thing straight: venting about something someone actually did to you isn't “playing the social game.” It’s not a manipulation tactic, a calculated move for attention, or some secret scheme to win over a crowd. Sometimes, it’s just a person saying, “Hey, that hurt.” And guess what? That’s allowed, totally within your rights to do, bitch the fuck away.

Gossip with the intent to change how someone treats someone else, is.

But in a world obsessed with optics, we’ve reached a point where even telling the truth can get twisted into some kind of PR stunt. Speak up about abuse? You're being dramatic. Talk about betrayal? You're “airing dirty laundry.” Set a boundary? Suddenly you're “weaponizing victimhood.” Please. Please stop being so stupid and google what naive realism is.

Let’s call it what it is: people don’t want to sit with discomfort unless they can control the narrative. If they’re not the hero, or if they might have to re-evaluate their loyalty, they’ll brand your pain as strategy. And when they do that, they’re not protecting society from drama. They’re protecting themselves from accountability.

Venting ≠ Social Climbing

In fact gossip in general is a poor social climbing strategy anyway, for the weak.

There’s a big difference between venting and smearing. Smearing is calculated. Venting is survival. It’s the pressure release valve that stops someone from exploding after days, weeks, months, or even years, of swallowing it. It’s the midnight voice memo. The text to a friend. The “I can’t believe they did that” moment that isn’t about audience manipulation, but mental clarity.

But to those who benefit from your silence? Any noise at all sounds like a threat. So they tell you to “move on,” “be the bigger person,” or better yet, “keep it private.” Because what they’re really saying is, “Don’t mess with the version of you we can tolerate.” They want the quiet, clean version. The one who doesn’t interrupt their comfort.

The Real Social Game

Ironically, the people most afraid of being seen as “players” in the social game are often the ones refusing to play it. Venting isn't the game, but navigating silence to keep everyone else comfortable is. Pretending it didn’t hurt so you don’t look bitter? That’s the game. Letting people mischaracterize you because correcting them sounds “petty”? That’s the game.

Saying what happened is not a power grab. It's not performative. Sometimes it’s just someone sitting in their car trying not to scream. Sometimes it’s telling a story to find meaning in the mess, publicly or privately it doesn’t matter. Sometimes it’s the only way someone can keep from losing their mind.

And the only ones calling that a “game” are the ones privileged enough to never have to do it for survival.