You know what truly amazes me? The sheer lack of personal contact in today’s society. We live in a world where everyone is connected by the tenuous threads of social media, and very disconnected from their own families, friends and neighbors. People in the younger generation, my generation, have seemingly lost the ability to talk on the phone or face-to-face, and instead choose the anonymity of the Internet.

It’s kind of funny and sad really. When I tell people that I am not on Facebook anymore, they give me a weird look, like I’m crazy or something. And when I call people rather than text, they generally wonder if something is wrong. Don’t worry folks; I haven’t lost my mind. I’m just trying to bring back this little thing called communication.

This is something that has been weighing heavily on my mind since I entered college three years ago to major in Communications and Community Media. When I meet new people and become acquainted with them, a few days later, they always say, “Hey, I looked for you on Facebook, but couldn’t find you. Is your name different on your profile?” They don’t even seem to consider that I’m just not on it. I proceed to give them my cell phone number, which they subsequently never text or call, and people I thought were my friends when I was on Facebook barely talk to me now that I’m off it.

Facebook is useful in some sense of the word, I suppose. You can stalk people to find out who they really are before you decide to become friends. You can get a laugh from pages like JSC Hookups and JSC Confessions, on which people post the most ridiculous things simply because they are a number rather than a name.

Seriously, would anyone say things like “Freshman Year 2008, I drank two 40s in 15 minutes. This was the same night a water pipe broke, and all the bathrooms were locked on campus. This resulted in me peeing in various places, including on Govs North 3rd floor hallway carpet (3 times),” to someone’s face, or when you could be identified? I don’t think so.
Now, someone is trying to bring JSC confessions back. Why? This page was shut down a few years ago for a reason.

Facebook also masks who people are in the real world. People change when they are sitting behind a computer screen just talking to a name rather than a face. It’s scary. For some people, that’s the only way they know how to communicate these days. I know someone whom I could call a million times, and only extract ten words from her, but if we chat via text or instant messaging, she’ll talk for hours. What’s up with that? So my plea is this: Please put down your laptops and handheld devices. When you need to send an email, instead pick up the phone and call. When you want to message via Facebook, meet that friend for coffee. Trust me: face-to-face communication is far more personal than online chatting, and it helps you realize who your true friends are.

-Kayla Friedrich, Editor-in-Chief