In America the majority raises formidable barriers around the liberty of opinion; within these barriers an author may write what he pleases, but woe to him if he goes beyond them.
May 18th - the No. 1 online social network raised as much as $18.4 billion in one of the biggest (IPOs) initial public offerings in U.S. history.
May 19th - the birthday of the No. 1 social activist, who was slain for making his thoughts about racial equality in America public.
Facebook Chief Executive, Mark Zuckerberg is a celebrated, heralded and modern-day innovator who is credited for bringing the world closer together, while standing behind a computerized podium.
Civil Rights activist, Malcolm X, was labeled a separatist (amongst many other, less kind adjectives) and was subsequently murdered while standing on an actual podium. Malcolm’s grave was being dug while he was trying to establish a peaceful social network for all – contrarians had other ideas. Obviously.
Zuckerberg’s platform freely allows people to compile, share and disseminate unlimited personal information of the most personal and inner most thoughts to a group of people, while dressed in flip-flops and PJs. At any moment, at any given time, you can find out whether your friend chipped a nail or their very last words before the final nail sealed their coffin. In any instant, you can follow friends [or even a foes’] journey through life without ever uttering a single word aloud or ever leaving the confines of your home (in some cases, cell). The irony in Facebook being called a “social network” is almost too knee-slapping funny to uncover here. Besides, I have a feeling any revelation to the contrary of a “social” network would be greeted by a chorus of boos by the most vigorous en-users. You could almost make a case that Facebook has become the 21th Century version of the Emperor’s New Clothes.
I’ve always thought the #1 rule in socializing was actually being in a space of two or more people enhancing all five of your senses (6 if you are a mom). It is really hard for me to remotely think that I’m really being social if I cannot see your facial expression, interpret your eye-contact, or study an accent and presume one's birth origin. In one's actual space you can absorb one’s perfume (or cologne), examine one’s hair style, or inspect the color scheme in an otherwise unspoken environment. You cannot take for granted the involuntary thoughts you have when you witness the body motion or the posture of a stranger (assuming you didn’t grow up with George Zimmerman). What about a person’s accessories or how a crowd responds to an entrance in a room? I just love to watch a person’s head nod or ears raise to an unfamiliar song.
It seems as though we willingly traded in all of these interpersonal skills and gestures, and left the “hand-shaking” to dummy terminals. And, why wouldn’t we? After all, Facebook has allowed family members to stay in touch and share family portraits that would (otherwise) be buried on a shelf next to Christmas cards, phone books and encyclopedias. Now with a point and a click you can share unlimited files of personal places, things and ideas with someone you spent your entire life avoiding – even if NOW they actually believe you are all of a sudden “staying in touch.” Heck, you can even send a birthday card to a person you haven't seen or spoken to in 20 years, while not knowing their address. Brilliant, huh?
Well, while your newfound friends, family & foes are dancing with their newly and reacquainted stars, Facebook and the government are just tickled that 99.9% of its users never bother to read the agreement. It’s that type of apathy that allows the USA to still be considered a democracy. Come on, you knew they'd be at least one political digression.
Many users MAY be aware that all the information posted on Facebook is the property rights of Facebook. Perhaps they know and just don’t care. Perhaps. Who knows, maybe that aspiring artist understands that if they shared a not-yet-released single with a group of social networked friends via Facebook that FB now has just as many rights to the song as the artist – even if the artist later deleted their page. Ditto, for all pictures, comments or any other information that travels from one “dummy” to the next. You may close out a FB account, but rest assured FB won’t, in fact quite the contrary is true.
Freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
DID YOU KNOW
Facebook has assembled a formula that will calculate the value of each and every user? The key word is “VALUE”. Yep, every user has a price, which is based (among other things) on: the number of pictures you post, the number of comments you send, your occupation/industry, your age, sex, home value, income, marital status, voting alliance/political affiliation, vehicle ownership, religion, spending habits and of course the people you call friends. Care to guess who would have the most interest in such a concise & updated database full of their citizens?
Here’s a clue, it’s the same assembly of people that would prefer you delete May 19th from your terminal.
Consider February 21, 1965 a friendly reminder.
Ray Lewis
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