When I joined Facebook 4 years ago, the social network that triumphed over Friendster was mostly used for business. I had at least 10 friends and barely posted on my wall. I even left my account dormant for months. Then, I met some friends that changed my cyber-social life.

We were on a city tour and they were taking a lot of photos. My friends were travel bloggers who enjoy life juggling work and play. I also had my own camera but the quality is no good. So I relied to my friends equipped with bazooka lens cameras. As they preview the photos, I heard them saying, “Tag, tag, I will tag you”. I am pretty sure this is a Facebook feature.

We separated ways after the tour and I was trying to remember my Facebook password. I went online and logged-in. I searched for my friends, made friend requests and updated my profile. At first, I only accepted friend requests from people I really knew. But since I want to expand my network, I accepted and even added some people I barely knew.

And now the wickedness of the social network begins. Some people are so addicted and do not know the dangers of being overly sociable. Yeah, it is great to find your voice and be heard but if you are not cautious, you will only regret what you did and you can never take it back. You can make a public apology but your actions are already a history to your friends. Shameful, isn’t it?

Better keep a grudge to yourself than to publicize it to everyone. Some of your friends might not enjoy reading them. I hate to hear what my friends say about something just to get attention even if it is a worthless piece of colon cannonball. Better shut up and keep the world a better place unless it is a matter of life and death. If you are a concerned citizen, that is fine. Go ahead and make a change for the better.

I was addicted once. I wasted time on Facebook, reading all day what my friends been up to and continuously posting something on my wall to catch attention. I was like in hypnosis or something that I cannot keep my browser away on that website.

I have seen people posting constructive criticisms and have gone way overboard. I have seen people posting scandalous photos which must be left unseen. Facebook has transformed into a warzone and contaminated with scammers and perverts. Facebook is defenseless that they cannot even detect fake and underage profiles. I am sure you have heard the news. And what is worse, people tend to broadcast their exact locations and future whereabouts. Are they not aware that some lunatic might be stalking them? They are putting their own lives at risk and Facebook is not even giving extra-concern for this!

On the other hand, I still love the social network in some way. It serves as my unprocessed online memoir which reminds me of what I have been through and the friends I have been. It also reminds me of the videos that I must see, the music that I must hear, the places that I must go, the foods that I must try and other special interests based on my friends posts. I also use it to bookmark websites I love. If I do not feel sharing something to a friend, I just block them. The best part is, I can spy what my loved ones have been up to if they did not tell me the whole story. That is the benefit of sharing login infos. I can see what my friends are doing even if they do not tell me personally.

Now, I realize that I must stop. Life was much better with privacy. I have learned to shut up and mind my own business. I do not post on my wall or like that often anymore unless it is work-related. I stop myself to post a comment even if I have something to say about it.

By the way, be ready with the consequences on what you post. Who knows, your boss might be spying on you. You can lie to your boss but you cannot help telling the truth in Facebook, right?

• Published in Travel, Life, & Leisure
• 6 Comments
•