Facebook Frustration

Traditionally, us Brits are known for our reserved natures. But, since Facebook has come into being, this ‘stiff upper lip’ seems to have gone out of the window. When did it become okay to air dirty laundry on such a public forum?

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Everyone knows that 95% of your Facebook friends aren’t actually friends at all. They’re people you went to school/college/uni with, plus a couple of people you met on a night out, that friend of a friend you said ‘hi’ to once on the bus, and a second cousin twice removed. So, basically, a lot of the people that can see your online profile are almost complete strangers. Therefore you should be doing some serious vetoing before you publish that Facebook status.

We’ve all posted embarrassing photos, written a drunken status that we regret, and have a hell of a lot of embarrassing posts/pictures/comments from our teenage years. But I always assumed that this is something everyone grows out of. There are loads of newspaper articles about people losing jobs/not getting jobs in the first place because their employer looked at their social media site. Isn’t that enough of a warning to make people think twice?

Nothing is sacred online.

The thing that I find most scary is that our future children will be able to see our social media profiles. So, when you tell your son/daughter that it isn’t acceptable to go out and get drunk, they can quote that status you wrote when you were sixteen about ‘going to get plastered’ and even back it up with photographic evidence of you with your head down the toilet/dancing on the bar/snogging that random guy dressed as an elf.

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In my News Feed, I have seen someone tell the world that she has contracted Chlamydia; parents with young children saying how much alcohol they are about to imbibe; and domestic arguments where multiple people get involved.

I really don’t think it’s acceptable to have a foul-mouth Facebook rant, no matter how angry you feel. Some days I would love to comment back on each status saying what I really think. For example:

FB status: ‘I’m so tired of all this shit’.
Me: ‘YES. ME TOO!’

I don’t want to know the intimate details of what you get up to with your boyfriend, what you’re eating for dinner, and when you are going to the toilet.

Also, why put up a status saying something awful/exciting/interesting has happened, and then, when people ask about it, claim that you ‘don’t want to say’?! What was the point of putting the status up in the first place?

Trolling has become a prevalent type of bullying. Some people feel that as they are not speaking face-to-face, it is somehow okay to be abusive to someone.

Olympic champion, swimmer Rebecca Adlington, was sent nasty messages about her appearance. She has achieved the success that most people dream of, but never reach, yet she has to endure petty and hurtful name calling.

Social media should be a bit of fun and a good way of connecting with people who mean something to you. I admit that I’m guilty of some Facebook faux-pas, but I am endeavouring to be on my best behaviour.

As the saying goes, ‘if you don’t have anything nice to say, then say nothing at all’.

You can’t retract what you put down in writing, so don’t let that red wine fuelled rage come back to bite you on the bum.

Us Brits are supposedly reserved, but we also have a great sense of humour. It would be nice to see more of the latter online. A nice comment is worth more than a thousand horrible ones.

If you liked this article, check out Is social media channeling a new wave of attention seekers? and I Know You ‘Like’ Me, But Do You Like Me? 

Tags: dirty laundry Facebook frustration Rebecca Adlington social media trolling

Categories: Cringe Factor Rant