Social Media
Smart phones and social media: Destructive
Exclusive: Larry Klayman gives 4 reasons handheld devices are ruining our youth
Larry Klayman - 11 Feb 12 - WND
There is always a tendency for an older generation to wax nostalgic about the past. While I am not old, in my opinion at least, what I have observed in recent years about our nation’s youth and their use of smart phones in particular, which facilitate their constant access to social media like Facebook, Twitter, MySpace and other means of constant “social contact” with their “friends,” would-be acquaintances and past, present and future boyfriends, girlfriends and spouses is frightening. While the elder generations have run the country into the ground with poor politics, governance, economics and morals, I see little hope that the younger generations will someday pull us out of this nosedive to our own self-destruction. In fact, things are certain to get much worse, hastening the “fall of Rome,” much less individual lives, in short order. This is true for a number of reasons.
First, the use of smart phones has become an addiction not too much different from excessive drug and alcohol usage. Indeed, there are several published studies and articles that confirm this, some even suggesting that the same portions of the human brain are affected with this similar addiction – which manifests itself as obsessive neurotic behavior. As a result, our nation’s youth are constantly and obsessively texting, emailing, sending, receiving and replying to messages on social media sites – also frequently posting or sending suggestive pictures of themselves to entice or lure new boyfriends and girlfriends, or just to flirt and tease – communicating all day long on almost a minute-by-minute basis.
As a result of the distraction caused by this obsessive behavior, our nation’s youth are growing up largely unable to concentrate on the tasks before them. In short, they have developed the attention span of a gnat, which has negatively affected their performance at school, work and otherwise. And, it is not only performance that is affected, but their relationships with teachers, work supervisors and the like who see our nation’s youth, up close and personal, simply goofing off when they need get serious and concentrate on the task at hand. [See "Cellphone addiction," Forbes.com, "Addicted to phones? Cell phone use becoming a major problem for some, expert says," University of Florida News, and "Smartphone addiction of the rise, says new study," Mother Nature News.]
Second, the use of the written text message, email or Facebook message on smart phones has significantly reduced the need to communicate orally. Ironically, smart phones, which are in essence intended to be just that – phones – are rarely used by our nation’s youth for verbal communication. As a result, oral language skills, the ability to express oneself in actual speech, have suffered greatly. This helps explain the younger generation’s use of the word “like” nearly before every noun, adjective or adverb. Our youth have become the “like” generation (as we were the “um” generation but to a much lesser extent). Couple this with the widespread use of profanity in their daily speech, such as “F you” and “you’re a d–k” – which is the language of the myriad of today’s low-class television reality shows such as “The Kardashians” – and you have a generation that if they communicate verbally at all, it is frequently personally vulgar and highly offensive. This is “like” very bad for society as a whole, much less relationships!
Third, smart phones and their easy access to social media are destroying personal relationships on an epidemic basis. I have been told by many friends that their spouses, girlfriends and boyfriends have become so hooked to the devices that they are kept on night stands. Morning or night, their paramours become wedded to the devices – texting, emailing and sending Facebook messages just before bed, during the night and during the early morning right in front of their partners, or by not too inconspicuously taking the smart phones to the bathroom or “behind closed doors” to send messages in secret. This behavior, and the clandestine use of smart phones during the day, creates the impression with the “significant other,” sometimes for good reason, that their companion is either having an affair with someone else, or is in the process of using social media to try to start one. In effect, the inability and/or lack of desire to spend uninterrupted time with the “one you’re with,” your partner, is causing a tidal wave of break-ups – furthering personal insecurities, instability in relationships and other societal problems. In effect, its like having a third person(s) always in the room with you – and one that may not have your “best interests” at heart.
Fourth, the use of smart phones is so addictive that many younger people (and the older generation is, while less so, guilty as well), use the devices while driving their cars. The result, particularly with regard to text messaging, is far more auto accidents and accidental deaths of pedestrians in particular – as the user is distracted, preoccupied and not aware of what is in or crossing the road in front of him. The situation is so bad – given the car wrecks, injuries and deaths that have resulted – that many states have passed legislation banning the use of handheld smart phones while driving. But this had hardly deterred our nation’s youth, who think without rational basis that a tragedy will never befall them, as they are often too young and haven’t lived long enough to appreciate the consequences of killing a young child on a bike, for instance.
In conclusion, you probably thought that Larry Klayman was finally writing a column devoid of politics. But sorry to disappoint! As you may know, President Barack Hussein Obama has openly admitted that he too is addicted to his Blackberry and had one made that is secure from wiretapping or interception by adversaries foreign or domestic. While this may help explain the president’s poor performance in office – apparently he is distracted and unable to concentrate, like the nation’s youth – at least his smart phone insures his privacy. Not so for the rest of us; the government and other entities can easily and do tap into your communications.
So the next time you pick up your smart phone, think not only how it is destroying our younger generation, and many persons who are part of the older ones, but also how your privacy is no longer protected from government and other sources of intrusion. As a result of its prolific use by terrorist organizations and groups, the FBI and the intelligence agencies now regularly and scrupulously monitor postings and messages on Facebook, for example, not to mention foreign hackers and intruders.
Perhaps, with this awareness, our nation’s youth will be scared into communicating the old-fashioned way – verbally – and “like” improve the chances that our culture, and personal relationships, will again “like” advance, not continue to “like” degenerate.
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U.S. to mine social media to predict future
Intelligence analysts use Facebook, Twitter to track events
13 Feb 12 - WND
(NEWS) — THE United States government is seeking software that can mine social media to predict everything from future terrorist attacks to foreign uprisings, according to requests posted online by federal law enforcement and intelligence agencies.
Hundreds of intelligence analysts already sift overseas Twitter and Facebook posts to track events such as the Arab Spring.
But in a formal “request for information” from potential contractors, the FBI recently outlined its desire for a digital tool to scan the entire universe of social media – more data than humans could ever crunch.
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Rise in nomophobia: fear of being without a phone
Two-thirds of people suffer from 'nomophobia' - the fear of being without their phone - according to a new study.
'Nomophobia' - the fear of being without your phone, is affecting more and more people Photo: ALAMYResearchers found 66 per cent of people are terrified of being without their phone, and the younger they are the more worried they are.
First identified in 2008, it would appear nomophobia - defined as 'the fear of being out of mobile phone contact' - is increasing with far more admitting to the problem than when a similar poll was conducted four years ago.
A survey of 1,000 people in employment found two-thirds of them fear losing their mobile phone.
The study, commissioned by SecurEnvoy, revealed that 41 per cent of the people polled have two phones or more in an effort to stay connected.
When asked if they'd be upset if a partner looked at the messages and texts on their phone almost half said that they would.
Women worry about losing their phones than men - 70 per cent of the women surveyed, compared to 61 per cent of the men, yet it is men that are more likely to have two phones - scoring 47 per cent and 36 per cent respectively.
When split by age it is young adults, aged 18 to 24, who are more nomophobic (77 per cent), with the 25 to 34 age group second (68 per cent). The third most nomophobic age group were those aged 55 and overs.
Andy Kemshall, SecurEnvoy co-founder and chief technology officer, said: "The first study into nomophobia, conducted four years ago, revealed that 53 per cent of people suffered from the condition and our study reveals this has now risen to 66 per cent in the UK and shows no sign of abating.
"A reversal on the 2008 findings is that, back then, it was men that were more afflicted yet today it's women.
"I'd be inclined to draw the conclusion that, perhaps because more men have two phones, they're less likely to misplace both and therefore be left phone-less.
"There is another study into mobile phone use that found people check their phones, on average, 34 times a day so it wouldn't take long for you to realise if you'd misplaced your device."?
The survey also found that although 49 per cent of people get upset if their messages and texts were viewed by a partner, they're still lax at securing these devices with 46 per cent do not use any protection at all, 41 per cent using a four pin access code; and just 10 per cent encrypting their device.
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February 16, 2012 - Frank Viola.org
The Art of Being a Jerk Online: 9 Sure WaysIf you’re past the age of Mosaics and Busters, you might want to make sure you’re sitting down. In fact, you may want to hold on to your chair real tight. I’m using a style of language here that some may not understand and misinterpret. I’m doing it make a point. So Frankie says relax before you read on . . .
“Jerk: Slang . a contemptibly naive, fatuous, foolish, or inconsequential person.” Not a cuss word.
According to recent studies (you know, the same ones that show that research is known to cause cancer in rats), if two Christians disagree with one another online for more than three consecutive days, there is a 97.3% chance that one of them will end up calling the other a “child of Satan” or a near-equivalent.
With that in mind, here are nine sure-fire ways to perfect the art of being a jerk online:
1. Move from arguing the substance of a disagreement to attacking the person with whom you disagree. (This is called an ad hominem argument. Attack the messenger while you disagree with their message. People often do this when they can’t win an argument.)
2. Assume what other people think and believe rather than asking them directly. And state your assumption about what they think and believe as though it were gospel fact to others. (Did I say without asking the person whose name you’re dropping directly about what he/she believes or thinks? I’m always amazed when Christians do this.)
3. Say things to your fellow sistas and bruthas in Christ that you would never have the gall to say to their faces. (In other words, play the part of a gutless wonder and a spineless coward.)
4. Don’t read a blog post or comment carefully. Instead, read “into it,” jump to conclusions, then go off (or go snarky) on the blogger or commenter. To be more specific, never ask clarifying questions about something you just read (such as, “Maybe I’m not understanding you correctly, but are you saying xyz?” . . . or . . . “If what you’re saying is true, what is your response to abc?”). Nope. Just lay into the person after you’ve “read into” their post or comment. Ask no questions in a gracious manner, only make statements and accusations.
5. Write something online when you are angry or your feelings have just been hurt. Give no time to bring it to the Lord. Stone that angel who is telling you to wait because you’re not in the Spirit. Instead, let your emotions control your reaction.
6. Presume to know what another person is thinking and assume you know the motives behind their words and actions. Put yourself in the seat that only God Almighty occupies and impugn their intentions. (Anytime a person says something like, “You said that because” . . . or “You were trying to xyz when you said or did abc” that person is judging the motives of another mortal.)
7. Engage in “drive-by” character assassination by posting a comment on other people’s blogs that smears the reputation of another child of God. Don’t post your real name and your real email address when you leave the flaming comment. And hope that the blogger is sloppy enough to not notice the comment so they don’t delete it immediately. (As heinous and immature as this is, I’m sorry to say that some “Christians” actually do this sort of thing. Interestingly, every comment left on a blog has an identifiable IP address. So it’s not that difficult to identify the person.)
8. If someone gives you a response, ignore their response and repeat your points over again. Have the attitude, “Don’t confuse me with the facts,” and disregard what they say. Just keep pushing the same points over and over again, hoping that they will eventually agree with you.
9. Forget what your Lord taught you. Defy your spiritual instincts and grieve the Holy Spirit of God by treating other people (especially those you don’t like) in a way that you would never want to be treated yourself. Post things online to and about others that you’d never want posted to and about you or your loved ones. In other words, claim you believe Jesus’ words in Matthew 7:12, but disobey them without wincing.
News Alert: The world is carefully watching how we Christians treat one another online. Keep this in mind the next time you sit in front a computer and write something.
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Graffiti: The Ancient World’s Social Media
Biblical Archaeology Society Staff • 09/01/2011Thousands of ancient graffiti can be found carved into the walls of burial caves, tombs and quarries throughout the land of Israel. Typically, they include the name of the carver, sometimes accompanied by a brief prayer or simple drawing. Though these simple messages from the past have traditionally been neglected by scholars, some archaeologists are beginning to study these remains more carefully to see what they can reveal about the societies that created them. “Graffiti are a way of expressing yourself,” said Boaz Zissu, an archaeologist and senior lecture at Bar Ilan University who has been studying Israel’s ancient graffiti for decades. “In a period when Internet and blogs didn’t exist and somebody wanted to express himself and to say something they were doing, they did it with a nail on a wall of a cave.”
Still popular on walls today!
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Facebook becomes anti-social network
2/3 of users pruning their friends list to be more selective
27 Feb 12
(DAILY MAIL) — Rising numbers of Facebook users are deleting friends as they ‘prune’ their on-line profiles, research has revealed.
Two-thirds of those who use the social networking website say they have ‘unfriended’ somebody they do not want to know any more.
Another 44 per cent deleted comments made by other people on their profile page and 37 per cent removed tags of themselves from photos.
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TO: God.Com
Dear Lord,Every single evening
As I'm lying here in bed,
This tiny little Prayer
Keeps running through my head:God bless all my family
Wherever they may be,
Keep them warm
And safe from harm
For they're so close to me.And God, there is one more thing
I wish that you could do;
Hope you don't mind me asking,
Please bless my computer too.Now I know that it's unusual
To Bless a motherboard,
But listen just a second
While I explain it to you, Lord.You see, that little metal box
Holds more than odds and ends;
Inside those small compartments
Rest so many of my friends.I know so much about them
By the kindness that they give,
And this little scrap of metal
Takes me in to where they live.By faith is how I know them
Much the same as you.
We share in what life brings us
And from that our friendships grew.Please take an extra minute
From your duties up above,
To bless those in my address book
That's filled with so much love.Wherever else this prayer may reach
To each and every friend,
Bless each e-mail inbox
And each person who hits 'send'.When you update your Heavenly list
On your own Great CD-ROM,
Bless everyone who says this prayer
Sent up to GOD.ComAmen
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