I’ve been reported countless times. Last one was for saying: “Yeah. Most men suck.” Yet, whenever I report someone, they get off saying some vile shit. I’ve also been repeated for being sarcastic, and meaning the opposite of what I’m saying.
What’s the point of communicating anyway? Almost anyone willing to participate in discourse are Republicans. I honestly think people are tired of interaction with them, and just let them give their shitty take without challenging them.
Fuck Zuckerberg. That puke is sketchy as shit. Going to right wing sources to make up harmful trends that TikTok users are supposedly doing…
Facebook is not designed for discussions or debates. It’s designed so you can show off your lifestyle to your friends (and they theirs to you). Trying to discuss issues on Facebook is like trying to write the Great American Novel on toilet paper. In invisible ink. And then using it for its original purpose.
So if discussion of issues is all you attempt to use it for, yes, by all means turn it off. Save yourself the grief.
Facebook blows fucking ass, and getting rid of it was one of my life’s greatest gifts to myself. If you want to know for sure which of your friends and family are racist, intolerant assholes, it’s good for that. If you want to reunite with someone from junior high who is a racist, intolerant asshole, Facebook is your answer.
Pull the fucking plug.
(By the way, Aunt Rita, fuck off!)
This is me too. I don’t even know my password. I signed up because as a computer professional, I felt I should know something about it. Meh.
Relatives and I suppose some friends are on it, but I do just fine without. Not that I don’t care, but I have zero interest in making a 100 friends or likes or whatever. I’m doing just fine thank you very much. I’m too busy as it is. Don’t care what someone hade for lunch.
I’m talking about design, not marketing. The flow of discussions is impossible past one or two answers to a post.
Of course they try to highlight contentious shit, because usage is profitable to them compared to non-usage. Your participation pays their bills. If all you get out of it is frustration, then your frustration is paying their bills. I can see no downside, as you have described it, to your stopping the use of Facebook entirely.
Maybe it’s the algorithm, but I rarely scroll past a post that gets my blood pressure up or interested in giving my 2 cents for debate. The non-friend stuff is usually stupid shit like “only 10% of people can solve this puzzle!” It’s also possible that my brain filter just skips past stuf, but I’m looking at my page now and scrolling, and the first 30 posts are nothing but lost dogs, a Southern Poverty page, a bunch of posts about New Haven, Michigan, a South Side Chicago group, food, more food, more lost dogs, music stuff, photography stuff. a data science ad, etc. I’m scrolling, scrolling, scrolling and I don’t see a single thing that riles me up.
Of course, very long ago I’ve unfollowed people whom I don’t feel like seeing posts from, but am happy to be friends with – it’s a pretty short list – but that helps curate what I see.
The more you use social media, the less happy you are, generally speaking. Some of that is correlational, but we’ve established specific mechanisms experimentally for certain questions, too. There’s definitely no reason to force yourself to use it.
If you don’t substitute it with other sorts of communication you might lose touch with people who use social media as their main method of keeping track of people, so you’ll want to establish/strengthen communication with people outside of social media, but in general most people are happier when they cut out social media.
I’ve had friends for decades who I like talking to and hanging out with and who would never say half the dumb shit they say on social media in person, but something about social media makes you want to bring out your dumbest ideas. I wish I never knew their social media personas.
Oh, wait. I just realized – I also use the Facebook Purity plug-in as of several months ago.
I get along with Facebook fine – no problems there for me. I find it a net positive. But I have seen a number of people take a break or completely quit, and it’s usually because they engage with the bullshit part (in my opinion) of Facebook and get into arguments. Facebook is a terrible venue for debate. You’re just wasting your time and fraying your nerves if you get into it. But for those for whom Facebook was getting to, leaving was absolutely helpful. Certainly, if Facebook doesn’t work for you and is causing you to get amped up, leave it. Your psyche will thank you for it.
But Facebook is an emergency back-up way to access the group, and through a link, to here.
Sure I’d lie if I said it wasn’t fun to BS with you all off line… but if I cut that link… it’s like an astronaut cutting his cable on a space walk. I might not be able to find my way back here… or even through to any of you.
I hate FB, but I don’t see an upside to deleting it (yet).
I enjoy Facebook for entertainment purposes and keeping in touch with old friends who otherwise I might never see. Unfortunately, some of them have turned into bigoted asshats with extremist political and social opinions I do not share, and sadly, those people have been unfollowed or unfriended. I marvel at the foolishness of people who engage in heated arguments on Facebook. Arguing with complete strangers? Who needs that aggravation? I also have some groups centered on hobbies and other interests I have and enjoy interacting with people around those. Seriously, if a person finds Facebook is controlling their life to the point of distress, they should get rid of it for their own peace of mind.