(Anti)Social Media

A video about the ills of social media has gone viral these past few days, and it caught my attention. It's a true eye-opener, and it's beautifully done. If you have not seen it yet, I highly encourage you to check out this link and watch it before you continue reading.

http://blog.petflow.com/this-is-a-video-everyone-needs-to-see-for-the-first-time-in-my-life-im-speechless/

This video really says it all, but here's something that I think we should consider a call to action. This video may influence us, but it's time we take it to heart so we can influence future generations.

More and more, I am seeing kids as young as seven years old playing on iPhones and sending text messages. Middle school aged children are lying about their ages and starting up Facebook accounts, using them just as much (if not more) than the average young adult does. It's absolutely sickening.

But what's even more unnerving is these kids are learning this antisocial behavior from US.

People in the age bracket of approximately 18-40 are the ones who fell victim to social media's sparkling appeal first. I can definitely say that I am much more addicted to using Facebook than I would like to be. And addiction to social media is a serious, SERIOUS problem.

Social skills are disintegrating into the comfort, safeness, and conformity of using social media sites. Because, we figure, why talk to someone face-to-face when sending them a text or Facebook message is so much more convenient? This toxic mindset is the mindset of so many people today, and it is the epitome of being antisocial.

A point to consider, however, is that social media has become such a large part of our daily lives. Social media usage has grown to the point where certain aspects of business organization are handled over social media. There are not many legitimate arguments you can make as to why this does not make sense. After all, people check Facebook just as much as they check their e-mails, so what could be more efficient?

I'm not saying it's a good idea to delete all forms of social media, especially since so many careers nowadays have such a strong social media base. But it's definitely time we realize that we need to cease the heavy abuse of social media.

If we can find a successful balance of using social media and practicing natural, human interaction with our friends and colleagues, then WE can change the dynamic of the next generation: our children. Children look to us, the first class of masters of social media, for guidance in the social world.

We need to show them that Facebook is not the social world. The social world is everything around us except our computers, our phones, and every object that has Internet accessibility.

Society is plummeting into an abyss leading to a brain-dead, virtual form of reality. And it is up to us to stop it. If we don't teach youths what being social really means, then we will be living in an entirely anti-social world before we know it.

If you are still reading this post, thank you for being patient with this rant. I hope you will join me in my efforts to find this healthy balance by taking some time out of your day to tune out of social media so we can tune in to life.