Sunday, April 4, 2010

Facebook jitters our minds


How do you choose friends?? Hmm … I guess when we know somebody think we can spend more time with each other than just "hi hello" then may be we decide “We are friends”. And how do say you do not want to be friends anymore?? You either stop talking to that person or put it straight “friends no more.”  And every time you do like this I’m sure you have some valid reason like your friend has hurt you someway or the other.

What if for the same rejection of a friend you are offered a Burger?? Grab a burger and ditch a friend. Would you do that?
Many did that. That’s the magic of the virtual world, where friends are added in a jiffy to prove popularity, friends are also deleted with a face value for a burger. Yap that had been the latest fad in America for quiet some long time last year and how. Whopper Sacrifice application made waves for its creative (and aggressive) use of Facebook friend removals.

Some of these things make you wonder what the value of a friend has scummed down to. I remembered the age old friendship where people once shared sacrificed endless things for the sake of their friends and simultaneously had a great laugh imagining the faces of people who read the notification of their “so called” friends that they where scrapped of for the sake of a burger.

Virtual world and social networking has been in debate since the day it came in our country the pace of life suddenly started to boom out , suddenly we realized we had no time for friends school friends college friends ex-friends so on and so forth and amidst it all we decided we need to connect and connect and keep connecting. Young old all wanted a piece of the cake without realizing what it might lead to. Yes social networking has been a great place to meet your old pals stay in touch with them and know them better. But one honest question to ourselves “have we just stuck to this agenda??”.

Maggie a facebook user said: I would be totally psyched if they kept the application but disabled the de-friend notification! That’s the whole reason I didn’t want to do it. Maybe it’s a generational thing–and this is totally my observation–but I think recent Facebook converts take “friend” way too seriously and being “de-friended” would cause all kinds of real-life drama. (I am 40, to give you an idea of where my perspective comes from). For “young” people Facebook is more casual and more about fun–if you know a person, or a person one of your people knows, or whatever–you friend them but don’t think much of it. It’s more of a popularity thing to have a million friends. But the older demographic that is joining Facebook in droves was most likely dragged kicking and screaming and was very skeptical about the whole thing–then started loving it as they connected with old friends. It’s way more personal for “older” people–and they would definitely be offended to be “de-friended.”
Another user heatfan said: “I sacrificed 10 friend to get my free Whopper. They took the best part of the application, your friends getting a message that they were being sacrificed for a Whopper. If you did not want your friend to know that you had sacrificed them for a free Whopper, then you should not have used the Application.”


Few people like Maggie might have stayed back with this idea of connecting old pals but not everyone. It is not just about an FB application rather the mindset of people for whom realities of life are actually a back burn of some video game. I can take up several examples and try and show you how kids do not realize what things might lead to. If today you value a friendship no more than a mere number shown on your facebook account how can we expect these kids to show more value while deleting them? A mere burger might still be big they might delete it if FB says we shall give you a star (nothing but an icon) for every deletion you make. Everyone would start deletion as if there’s some sudden spur or competition. Where have we got this mindset from why this speed and why this rush ?? Money power ?? authority?? What does it give us back?

We have lost the thoughts of THINK WAIT then REFLECT. Those are left as mere posters in enlightened places or mere preaches from elders. Actually we might start reasoning and defending this too but this definitely has a deeper reason. May be we have created this…? 

A race of selfishness has just begun it has started and we have no time to rear the next generation with any better values. The tougher the situation is the busier the world gets and we really have no time for anybody if not for ourselves.



 adios :)

P.S- I shall come up with some more thoughts keep waiting. Would write shorter article’s now on, sorry if they seem either too preachy or too lengthy to be read. Better write shorter articles than seeing them edited when published on newspapers for space constrains.

4 comments:

Sauc said...

where do u get those live examples from. i see u quoting sb in every post...

Shreya said...

@saucy..
by sb i guess u meant somebody ...I would reply in that respect.

Ya i have always quoted somebody or other in my posts bz in all those posts i have actually been writing for newspapers and as you know they don't just value what a writer writes and feels (unless you are as somebody high profile) :)
they want some quotes thoughts of people actually who have faced or gone through the subject you are writing about.
In true sense that is quiet much of journalism because while i was working for them they said its easier for someone to comment on something but it imp. to know what the view of other side is too.
:)
and its not tough i have dealt with topics of regular day kinds and have friends family relatives neighbors etc who were willing to share (with name withheld) :)

THEY ARE ALL REAL PEOPLE :)

btw this article quotes were from internet as burger king had started it in US there were already too many comments available on net :)

hope i answered your question :)
thanks for commenting :)
adios

Sauc said...

yeah! that was 'somebody'.
So u r writing for newspapers. I was rather surprised to know that. but given your deftness in writing it is best fit (as i see it :D)
Nice job!

Shreya said...

Ya i was officially into the job for few months later i left that job yet continuing my freelancer work there as well as for website
http://www.shetizenjournalist.com/when-self-esteem-stoops-low.htm

I don't believe i write anything drastically diff. but yes i do try and bring a diff. perspective as much as possible
Thanks for liking my writing..
:)
adios :)

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