Our recent class discussion questioned whether or not Facebook really was a breeding ground for the internet's garbage. While a majority of Facebook does compose of teenagers and even tweens posting about their mediocre and mundane lives, it doesn't always mean that it doesn't have better uses. There's little disagreement that Facebook has helped connect people, however superficial the degree. While I don't entirely agree that many "friendships" now can extend to your dad's co-worker's son-in-law's friend, I can't say that Facebook hasn't helped me reach out to people that I wouldn't normally have.
While online social networking has definitely breached some sort of barrier on privacy, we can still use sites such as Facebook to our advantage. Call me odd, but typically I don't always like hanging out with people in real time. Most of my hobbies require my own personal space and time alone. So online is really the only place where I actually take the time to speak and "connect" with others. The only people that I spend face time with are my best and closest friends. Any others that I deem as acquaintances, I usually keep a safe distance away from but still keep formalities and connections with via Facebook. Personally, I usually hide all posts by people I deem are posting junk.
Facebook is what I use solely for keeping impersonal relationships and maintaining formalities. To construct an entire friendship based off of it, however, is absurd. For without real life interaction, there will always be something missing -- similarly to how online relationships lack intimacy. But Facebook used properly can help you with garner the kind of connections you never knew you had.
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