I feel the same, and I think that as useful a tool as it can be, it also has the effect of feeding impatience in our "instant gratification" society, where people become so used to being able to find anything they want at the touch of a button that it makes developing patience, which is after all, a virtue, much much harder than it would be ordinarily. I'm also a book lover, and I find the sterility of the internet to be somewhat disturbing to my sensibilities. I need the smell, the texture of old books, the dust and the feeling...as much as I like the feeling of pressing buttons.
I am concerned that it also has the effect of creating a barrier to peoples emotional realms, making empathy something that is harder to experience, though this forum has shown some thread and posts that have provided me with a stealthy counter argument to my thoughts on that matter. There are some people here who seem to be able to truly feel what is going on for the other person, or at least make the time and effort to try to...but the majority do not.
I suppose that happens in real life as well though. I also can't stand the "LOL" culture. I love words and I find the laziness people have with them to be distasteful to say the least. That's my personal opinion, and I know that others here don't feel that way and think it's fine, and that's fine...for them, not for me!
Quote:
Originally Posted by royster  While in the past 50 years communication has become easier and easier, the content of communication has deteriorated. HOW we communicate is essential to the overall growth of all. When this growth is affected by slang, abreviation and trivia, it stops being meaningful and beneficial.
While it is true that the internet brought us immediate information, much (if not most) of that information is virtually impossible to convey reasonably on Facebook. "LOL" means nothing to me, nor are any of the other cyber-speak cutsies meaningful or enduring.
If you look at the design of Facebook, you cannot promote a meaningful exchange, unless you devalue your communication skills. Honing them doesn't help, as you really only get a few seconds of notice at any time. By calling it a "social network" Facebook passes itself off as a good thing. I see it as a diminishing of language, communication and focus...deliberately.
You're free to think what you want, but you might want to make sure it is YOU doing the thinking, and not the subliminal messages of those who strive to keep you dumbed down. |