05/15/2026
A healthy community will always have its fair share of pessimists and bullies, but in a strong civic culture, they are just a background noise in a sea of positive voices. They may pipe up from time to time, but they don’t dominate the conversation. It’s only when things go awry that they seize the moment to do whatever the opposite of shine is.
These civic bullies aren’t the real problem; they’ve always been there and always will be. The problem is when everyone else slinks away and gets quiet.
Civic bullies are like any other bullies, they thrive only when they’re allowed to. They fill the void when things go wrong. They grab the mic when no one else wants it, then act like they’re the only ones who can hold it. But like every other type of bully, they shrink in the face of strength.
We don’t need to eradicate these people. though that does sound tempting. We simply need to be willing to stand up to them. And here’s the secret that makes this entirely possible: Nearly no one
agrees with them. They are a minority, though a loud-ass minority. They are louder than everyone else because most of us don’t like to be loud. Most of us don’t enjoy indulging in pessimism. Most of us try to avoid conflict. But these maniacs revel in it.
One of the best lessons I’ve learned in dealing with civic bullies came from Ryan Fairchild, owner of Dry Lake Brewing in Great Bend, Kansas. A few years ago, he explained how he helped create the Positive Social Response Team when the comments section in local discussions became inundated with negativity. When the civic bat signal went out via text or email, everyone on the list would jump in with positive and supportive comments. Eventually, the bullies lost
their pulpit and receded into the background. When no one listens to a bully, the bully doesn’t have much to say.
The lesson is this: Bullies will always exist, but their voice is only heard when no one else is willing to talk. The goal isn’t to out-shout them. The goal is to get the rest of the community to say something.
When the vast, and all-too-silent, majority finds its voice, the bullies will lose theirs. If this work has taught me anything, it’s that nearly everyone is positive, helpful, supportive, civic-minded, kind, caring, and non-confrontational.
We don’t have to fight the bullies.
We just need to encourage the rest to speak up.
