Social networking for the antisocial
In yet another testament to my obsessive nature, I've been spending way too much time weighing the pros and cons of joining Facebook. I have a feeling that a normal, well-adjusted person would not devote this much thought to whether or not to register for a free account on a social networking site, but Lord knows it's been years since either of those adjectives have applied to me. It's gotten to the point that I've been having unsettling dreams about potential Facebook encounters. Seriously. I may need professional help.
My biggest impediment to joining is still the idea that it will somehow ruin the cloak of invisibility that shields me from former high school classmates. The whole thing just seems like such a slippery slope--the more friends you have, the more ways people have to find you, right? Plus I still feel too old for it, although I know that's not true anymore.
But on the other hand, I hate to be the 21st century equivalent of those people who still didn't have an answering machine ten years after they were invented. I'm afraid I'm getting a reputation already--one of the students this semester was doing a sociological study on online communication and alienation, and her instructor suggested she interview me as an example of an allegedly young person who is leery of the new technology. I'm no early adopter, but I'm not an avowed Luddite, either.
Ugh. I'm sure it's only a matter of time. This is turning into a dilemma on the scale of whether or not to have children. Which will come first: the baby or the Facebook account? Frankly I'm not sure which is more of a commitment.
My biggest impediment to joining is still the idea that it will somehow ruin the cloak of invisibility that shields me from former high school classmates. The whole thing just seems like such a slippery slope--the more friends you have, the more ways people have to find you, right? Plus I still feel too old for it, although I know that's not true anymore.
But on the other hand, I hate to be the 21st century equivalent of those people who still didn't have an answering machine ten years after they were invented. I'm afraid I'm getting a reputation already--one of the students this semester was doing a sociological study on online communication and alienation, and her instructor suggested she interview me as an example of an allegedly young person who is leery of the new technology. I'm no early adopter, but I'm not an avowed Luddite, either.
Ugh. I'm sure it's only a matter of time. This is turning into a dilemma on the scale of whether or not to have children. Which will come first: the baby or the Facebook account? Frankly I'm not sure which is more of a commitment.
posted by Madame Defarge at 4:37 PM
2 Comments:
I don't see how an aversion to what boils down to an online popularity contest is in any way an indication of an aversion to technology. The two are not synonymous. I haven't embraced text messaging, and I feel my life is in no way less complete. And I can point to countless instances of said technology diminishing the quality of life for the texter as well as society in general. And as far as I'm concerned, the same can be said of online social networking. The internet and cell phones can be great tools, but an overdependence on them has led to cultural decadence. On the upside, I predict an increase in sales for ADHD and depression pharmaceuticals.
That being said...if you can't beat 'em, you might as well make meta-friends of 'em. =)
Meta-friends ... I like it.
While visiting this weekend I discovered that my Seattle friend (another former holdout) has also succumbed.
I think the comparison to text messaging is apt, though, and it helps me put the whole thing in perspective. While I haven't embraced it as a communication medium, I do use it occasionally and find it to be useful for certain things--but in no way a substitute for face-to-face or even phone or email communication. Perhaps there's a place for meta-friendship as a complement to, rather than a forced replacement of, actual friendship...
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