Here’s the thing about deleting your FaceBook account

When you finally reach the breaking point, you’re sick of all of the infighting and bickering, all of the people requiring that you look at things from their perspective, but refuse to see it from yours. When you have an opinion about politics that’s a bit too middle of the road for your left or right friends. When your family, your extended family, and/or your friends of your family engage in the kind of ‘behind the keyboard’ backstabbing, opinion tossing, open slandering of people that you care about – all because there are no repercussions – all under the guise of ‘I know someone better than you do’. When you’ve finally had enough and you go to delete your FaceBook account, you want to tell people. You want to educate them that the mire they’re drowning in, contributing to, addicted to – the social infighting, the ‘I’m better than you and here’s why’. Unfortunately when you compose a lengthy, well worded thought out op-ed piece on why you’ve finally given up on all of them, then delete your account – that post goes along with it. For those that actually reach the breaking point, then follow through with their account deletion, there is a narrow window of time between you saying goodbye to the world and that post being deleted for no one else to ever see. Fortunately for me, I have a blog and other social media accounts that for some reason have stayed clear of the close and personal infighting that’s the impetus for this post. I’ll be cross posting this blog post here (on sc-wifi.com) since it is technology related by way of it’s social media commentary – which has an odd tie to the technology I’m passionate about.

When my childhood friend decided today to make very public a private conversation with my older brother, people did what people do – decided to make assumptions about my brother’s intentions and decided they were going to turn into social commentators. Sadly, my friend did nothing to assuage the beratement that ensued, even encouraging it with comments about how recent holiday visits had been ‘awkward’. Couple that with his mother (and my mothers ‘best friend’) participating in the debasing spectacle assuming my brother was looking for ‘glee’.

Needless to say, it’s been far too long since I’ve made a stand. I’ve kept my political affiliation to myself (there is one person in the world that *knows* who I voted for, and I sleep next to her every night). You, dear reader, can make all the assumptions you want around who I support and why I support but I was raised that your political decisions are yours and yours alone. I try to keep a level head around the extreme on either side of the fence, trying to understand both perspectives, but the shameful display that occurred today, only has a single silver lining. That my sister in law had a chance to stand up for her husband. I’m ashamed to not have taken a stand before (I missed the last go ‘round) but it’s time to rectify that now. Clearly the longtime bond between our families has turned out to be just a sham.

Now, I’m getting ready to bring my second child into this world. I’ll protect them and my firstborn from the bullshit faux friends and infighting that’s ultimately the cancer that will cripple us all. You will not know about my child. You will not know if they’re boy or girl. You will not see pictures of them unless you text me (or I text you). This is not a challenge to repost, like, or otherwise solicit a response from you. It is merely a good bye. Your infighting has broken me. I’m done and it’s time I take a page out of my younger’s brothers book and say goodbye to FaceBook for good. In the narrow window between me posting this and deleting my account, if you happen to read it – please know – when you challenge my family, they will always wins out over you. It’s up to you how you support whom but when you call into question the goodness of a public servant – then expect that person to come rescue your ass when your house is burning down around you, you should know that despite the fact that you were an asshole to him, he’ll still help you.