Hi Paul,
My answer...I don't do social media, FB or other (I think of it as Fake Book). But like any other tool, it is how and why people use it that is significant.
I'd rather communication happen face to face. I want to see for myself who people really are. There are way too many people out there wearing mask over mask... including those we are "familiar" with. Face to face communication allows me to read people through and beyond their words which so often run opposite to their thoughts. Online communication makes lying easier. I want to catch that first, split second, uncontrolled reaction to what I'm saying, observe body language, tone of voice, silences between words, eye movements, general countenance and interaction with surroundings etc...Observing those tells me more about people than words.
All the above has helped me survive an abusive, violent childhood, watching for hidden signs of falsehood and imminent danger. Mindfulness is part of my everyday life, a necessity in my work with animals often deemed dangerous. I have lived at the edge of jungles and interacted at a deep level with people whose language I didn't speak.That's when inner truth prevails.
You could say I still live on the wild side and treat the human world as a jungle ! But this is what I know and how I function best.
I'm not saying FB doesn't have its advantages. There are times when keeping in touch long distance is a necessity, when it is the only place we can quickly access needed info.
It's just that remote communication is not my thing. It is the greatest challenge I face interacting around these forums, though members are generally more open because of inner suffering. Here at BB, people are exploring and sharing more than hiding their inner world. It is people's inner world I'm interested in and FB is an ideal means of keeping it under wrap.
