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RE: 🐺 The effect of social media on society - an opinion piece
You're right about one thing, social media and technology are changing the way we interact and socialize. But Facebook is only temporary. They're going to probably look back on this as weird in the future, and it is.
But many "friends" were fake before facebook. And few actually ever cared how your day really was when they asked. These are not new things. Facebook just makes it obvious how many fake friends you have. It also makes it obvious how fucking racist your uncle or grandma or whatever is, and how much you can't stand your family, or that one "friend".
We'll eventually find a happy medium where we can communicate with the edges of our social network, and still keep more "intimacy".
All technology in its form is temporary, it evolves/gets replaced/renewed all the time, but social media will always exist in one way or an evolved other. I don't think Facebook will ever look at it as it was weird it's like a smartphone user looking at a telegrapher. It will look outdated and old but also as a step towards what ever it is they have at that stage.
Fake friends back in those days were only the "forced" friends. Those who needed you for their benefit, (those whose mom forced them to be) and those that were friends with the friend that liked having you around. But the proportion of fake friends back then was way less (well... I can only speak for me obviously... for all I know you were the rich obnoxious kid that had the newest things every one wanted to play with ;P ).
Your point about Social media making it more obvious is very valid, a lot of our traits are enhanced by social media, but I believe that not all these traits were there for everyone before social media and they just got implanted by others, or they drastically grew afterwards. I should have incorporated that into the piece to... ah well we live and learn.
I hope your right, I fear we will live more and more for the outside world than for the "inside" world (something in the direction of surrogates and ready player one), right until the point where that bubble explodes and everyone will be alone having to start all over finding the intimacy again
Either you're very lucky, or very unlucky, to not know what fake IRL friends are. You don't need to be rich to have people that are only friends for their own benefit. Hell, on facebook, the only real benefit they have to being friends with most people is a single digit higher on their number.
People provide many things: entertainment, emotional support, beer.
Some will be your friends when it's convienent for them, but not when it becomes more difficult.
Being rich was just an example. Of course there are benefits I am not arguing that before there were no fake friends, they were just there in less proportion to real friends (unless you suck at friend making) until the day of today I can knock on any of my friends doors when I need help an they will invite me with open arms and help me where they can.
Hahaahaha! :D 2nd paragraph made me laugh so hard! :D
+everything else is in place! :)