Facebook has quickly become the most popular website in the world. You hear about Facebook everywhere you go.  In fact, Facebook is a great networking tool.  It has brought me in touch with long lost friends and relatives and has blessed me with many new friends.  Heck, it even gave me the opportunity to write for this magazine.

Although Facebook can be a great tool, I believe that many people are misusing it.  While it can make life easier, it is often used to cause drama and problems.  Facebook was not meant to be a personal journal or diary where you vent your relationship problems and curse your mother-in-law.  It was meant to join professional adults in common interests and goals.  I have seen great things such as Amber Alerts, fundraising benefits, class reunions and job listings.  However, I have also witnessed some horrifying posts containing profanity, sexually explicit material, and just plain negativity.  Guess what? Nobody cares.  This personal drama should be kept just that….personal. Some Facebook users may be compelled to respond to this negativity just as they are addicted to soap operas or telenovelas. However, Facebook is not real life because in real life we have to deal with these people and solve these problems. You have to eventually deal with your problems.

People have come to believe that the solutions to all of their problems is to X people out.  If someone pisses you off, you simply X them out.  “Ah, ha, ha….I removed them!” And? So what? You may have deleted your ex-boyfriend from Facebook but guess what? You’re probably going to run into him at the club or simply just walking down the street.  What does the X prove?

I will tell you what it proves.  It proves that you are an immature person unable to deal with real issues.  Don’t get me wrong.  If someone is completely disrespectful, becomes a stalker, or simply uses undesirable language on your profile, they should be removed.  Then again, maybe you should have never accepted them in the first place? However, I am not talking about that kind of deletion.  I am talking about the people who continually delete family members and friends only to friend request them the very next week.  I see this every day.  One of my friends has deleted the same guy over seven times. Why? Guess what? You can delete someone but that doesn’t mean that they are dead.  When you turn off your computer and go to the store, you’re probably going to run into your ex-Facebook friend.  You’re going to have to acknowledge the de-friended church lady.  Delete does not mean erase.  Instead of pushing that button in anger, grow up, deal with the situations and start using Facebook as a tool instead of a weapon.

“It takes two to quarrel, but only one to end it.”-Spanish proverb.

Author: Rhonda Gutierrez