Why do people insist on using Facebook, MySpace, or Twitter as political diaries anymore? Yes, I understand that you are perfectly free to express your opinions on these social media websites, but when is enough, enough? I can't even open my Facebook without having to read someone's opinion on the Obama Administration. I feel like I need to block my politically active friends so I don't have to hear about it. Personally, I'd rather be reading about the crazy antics of Muffy's Beagle than the Health Care Bill.
I am pro-opinion. I have a lot of opinions, and I will openly share them with whomever desires to listen. That is why I pick up the phone when I want to talk to someone about something. I do not post a status update of any significance that initiates comment after comment that reads something like this:
Muffy Stevens hates the new Health Care Bill! It sucks!
Jason Doe likes this status.
Johnny Bigguns wrote: Me too! I can't believe Obama is trying to make us pay for something we don't want!
Miffy Poachpot wrote: Like, OMG. Can you believe this is happening? We need to do something about this! Let's, like, stage a protest or something. A second March on Washington!
Tracey Longbottomstein wrote: I think the Health Care Bill will significantly change our country for the better. I have a full-time job, and I support 17 children and a no-good husband... it's hard to do that. This bill will help me!
Muffy Stevens wrote: Shut up, Tracey! Go tell it to someone who cares!
You get the idea. Then everyone's news feeds are nothing but entirely too-long diatribes riddled with poor grammar, text lingo, and too many "OMG"s to count. We can't open a newspaper, a magazine, a website, or even our phones anymore without being bombarded by political headlines. I highly doubt Obama is sitting by a computer anxiously awaiting what you have to say on FB, MS or Twitter, and I am positive that he does not care.
Here's an idea: pick up a telephone. I bet people in the "real world" (that's what we call the realm that is separate from the interwebs where real people outside of a computer live) may actually have an intellectual conversation with you about it. Sometimes I wish there was a group named "Stop Trying to Change the World with Your Status Updates" of which I could become a "fan."
Which brings me to my next point: becoming a "fan" of groups.
Someone please explain the point of this to me. Give me one good reason why I should become a "fan" of groups that have the names "I Actually Pay Attention to the L and R On My Headphones. Always." and "Join If You Have Ever Pushed a Door That Says 'Pull!" Are we serious? Or even just becoming fans of inanimate objects, like "Sweatpants," "Maple Syrup," "Cloudy Days," or "The Backspace Button." If I liked the backspace button that much, I'd look it in its eye and tell it so.
Sometimes I wonder that if I do not agree to become a fan of "Sweatpants," that one day I'll come home and all my sweatpants will be gone because they heard I am no longer a fan. Really?! Are we serious right now? Why do people actually put energy and effort into this garbage? I can understand becoming a "fan" of a band, an organization, or an establishment. At least there are actual people behind the computers who have put in serious effort toward the integrity and well-being of said group. Someone who has actually invested time and effort will see the fruits of their labor. Tell me the last time Maple Syrup came up to you, slapped you in the face, and told you off for not becoming a fan of it.
Facebook. MySpace. Twitter. These are not the places. Period. This is why I write blogs. If someone wants to read it, they have to put forth effort to do so. It does not just automatically invade your EyeSpace when you log on. If you have an opinion, voice it, but do so in a semi-contained forum. Do not think your status updates are "revolutionary" in any manner. They aren't. And if you have an opinion about what I'm writing, then call me. If you don't have my number, then I probably don't care what your opinion is anyway.
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