Social networking is more important then having friends.

Or so it would seem.

I don't think that there is a single person who would actually say "well actually, social networking is more important to me then having friends" but it's a thing that has happened. Social networking has BECOME more important then having friends and that is without most people even realising it.

People are constantly social networking. On the bus, (not just passengers but drivers too. Yes I have seen it with my own eyes-WHILST they are driving), whilst in work, whilst crossing the road and even when they are out drinking. I have seen so many people who I have gone out with that I haven't seen in ages now and again checking their social networking sites whilst they are with me.

This offends me.

I am not a boring person by any means. I am not a person without friends. The problem is that people without knowing are already so addicted to tweeting, or updating their status on some crap site like Facebook that it's almost a natural thing nowadays for people to forget how insane this actually is. And it is definitely NOT a personal insult if I am talking to someone and the conversation ends and then they check their status or whatever. It is more of the fact that people are seriously starting to lose their identities and individuality by becoming mindless drones. I have always liked people and are friends with those particular people BECAUSE of their individuality and uniqueness. Now they are becoming slaves to the social network.

One of the weirdest things is that people write about ANYTHING. As in the boring things that they are doing. They are not even bothered about hiding the dull. It is almost as if they want acceptance for every single thing they choose to write. No matter how pointless or boring.

Unfortunately it had now become a natural thing to go on the internet and talk to people via some kind of online way rather than meeting people and actually conversing and rather than doing some kind of activity with people. Not to say people aren't doing anything at all-of course they are, but it is happening less now.

And then comes the whole thing of why would you bother going to the effort to meet people when you can just talk to them over the internet. What is the point in making the effort to arrange to meet someone? You have to do yourself up, walk down the street, go to the place of meeting, check to see you're on time etc etc etc.

Is all this really becoming so difficult for people to do??

I CONSTANTLY get people asking me when I am going to "give in" and get a Facebook. I then CONSTANTLY tell them that I am against everything to do with Facebook as I think it is something that has ruined the way we live lives. It's not about giving in. I'm not fighting against it. It is just a thing that I do not agree with.

Most people don't really live at all. They just exist. Now it has gotten even worse with people actually choosing to not just socialise over things like Facebook, but they actually use it to be nosy, stalk other people and to even bully people. Countless times people have committed suicide because they were being bullied online. I have said this before but I don't think you can be bullied online as if someone was writing things about you on whatever social networking site you are using, you can choose not to read it! You can choose not to go on it! You can choose to switch off your computer, laptop, phone or whatever gadget you have and not bother with it! When I was bullied in school, and when all people are bullied anywhere ever-whether it be in school, college, work, anywhere in THE REAL WORLD, they don't have the option to just switch something off where it can be avoided. I understand the curiosity of wanting to see what people have written about you, but who cares?? Why has it become so important?? Why get upset about something some idiot has written about you when they wouldn't say it to you??

Anyway, back to the point, the other night, I saw four girls sat around one table, each one on their phone. Not one of them were speaking to each other. They were ALL on their phones. I thought maybe they were text messaging their other friends but they were spending way too long for that. They were all Facebooking. It was such a weird sight. Just try and picture it. Four girls, all dressed up with alcoholic drinks in front of them, all sat there for ages just on their phones and not talking to each other. It was so strange.

There seems to be a hidden addiction to that particular social networking site of Facebook. From what I have seen and said before, people are always on it. Even in work. They might put "bored in work." Again, who cares?? I'm all up for expressing opinions but with that-what is the point?

Children in school are constantly on social networking sites too. Studies have actually shown that since social networking sites became so popular, the average intelligence of a child has gone down. It distracts children from their education not just in school, but at home as well.

A lot of people seem to go on about how "there are games to play".

And??

Who cares if you get the highest score in something?? It is so pointless! It makes you stupid and a mindless drone. Do you really want to be a mindless drone?? There are a ton of films about zombies taking over the world, but we are actually becoming zombies ourselves. What would it matter if a bunch of people started eating each other if we are already having our souls sucked away from us.

The whole "friends" thing. I am not sure how it works, but you can make friends with people by clicking on some icon I am assuming. So you can make friends by clicking your mouse on your computer. As easy as that. Are these people really your friends?? Would they be OK if you called them at 4am in the morning to talk about life?? Would they even bother to answer the phone?? No. Probably not. These aren't people being your "friends", these are people who are just boosting their pathetic egos by disillusioning themselves that they have "friends".

Are people finding it difficult to make real human friends now??

Not only disillusioning themselves about having friends, but disillusioning themselves about who they actually are. If people aren't stalking someone (stalkers can have a field day through social networking sites), people are DESPERATE to try and look cool/good in their pictures and are DESPERATE for attention and for people to comment on their lives whilst always frantically updating their status in DESPERATE attempts to tell people about their lives. Why??

I read a straight to the point comment from someone about Facebook and it was:-

"I used to have a life. Until I got a Facebook."

Another thing is so many times I have seen people on a night out, far too busy posing for pictures which they will later put onto their social networking sites. Ask them afterwards if they had a good night, they will say something like "it was OK" but if they weren't so busy posing for their stupid pathetic pictures, they might possibly have had a great night.

People even post pictures of things like food. The food that they are eating. I would LOVE the opinion of someone who has never ever heard of any social networking sites on that particular matter of posting pictures of food. Imagine that. Someone taking a picture of a burger or something and posting it so other people can see the burger too. Instead of being thankful for having food on the table, they are broadcasting their food for others to see. It really is beyond belief.

I saw an amazing billboard advert for an alcoholic drink a while ago and the caption on it was "Update your status-get together." I thought that was so great to see a major alcoholic drink be advertised like that until one day, I saw the same billboard, but this time I noticed in small letters underneath it said "add us on Facebook". Talk about hypocritical. I was so disappointed.

Someone said to me the other day that with Facebook in particular, it is all about a "power thing". You can talk to someone without letting them know you were thinking about them. Their example was that if I liked a girl and had her number and I text messaged her, it would show her that I was thinking about her. Whereas if I saw her on Facebook, it would show she was online and I could say something along the lines of "just saw you online, thought I should say hello."

What utter bullshit.

I would WANT the girl to know I was thinking about her. I would WANT a girl to text me and show me that she was thinking about me! That is all part of the beauty of life. Where the fuck has this egotistical shit come from??

Birthdays and get togethers get missed by me because people don't bother personally getting in touch with me anymore. They just go on their page and say what they are doing and all their "friends" would know. What a shit way to invite people. Rather than calling them, having a chat and personally inviting them and telling them how much they would personally want them to be there, they would rather write it on a stupid website. My birthday now gets missed. Why? Because nobody cares! Unfortunately as well, sometimes, funerals get missed.

The whole point of this post is not me having some crazy rant. I just wished people would live lives and talk to people on a personal level. I know the whole argument is that if people live far, then it is such an easy way to keep in touch. I have known people to have moved to the other side of the world and they said that I should now get a Facebook so we can keep in touch. They already had my number, my Skype address, my email address. How I would have loved to even receive a letter in the post from them as they had my address too. How beautifully personal would it even be just to send an email??  I delete about 30 people a year from my phone. There is only so many times I can ring someone or text them or try and have a one on one conversation with them. People don't seem to do it as often anymore. They would rather check their social networking sites and kid themselves how popular they are rather than personal conversations. I guess talking on the phone or even texting/emailing is too much of an inconvenience. If they cannot be bothered doing that, well THAT is the problem.

That the personal connection between people is fading because of social networking sites.

And to think that a personal connection like that is hardly ever happening anymore actually makes me wish that real flesh eating zombies would invade us and save us from our pathetic selves.