You can like them, share them or comment on them, but you can't deny the fact that emotions play a major role in social networking sites, claims an old-timer.
AD: Hey, these old mittens look pretty moth-eaten… Should I throw them away?
BC: Why did you open that box? Those are my daughter's — she wore them when she was around five months old.
AD: You're kidding! I mean, I never took you for the mushy type. Always thought you belonged to the Clint Eastwood league of macho men who never had time for emotions.
BC: If you call my generation emotional, what about yours?
AD: C'mon, we don't hoard baby clothes in shoe boxes.
BC: But you have technology to do that.
AD: You mean we shrink-wrap nappies and put them in time capsules for posterity?
BC: No, you post every little detail about your little ones on Facebook, and with such alarming regularity that you won't need a time capsule — you're not giving anyone half a chance to forget anything from the day your kid graduated to the potty, to the grand kindergarten convocation.
AD: Well, we're just sharing our happiness with our friends. What's wrong with that?
BC: Absolutely nothing, except that you are the ones with online albums titled ‘My darling angel' and ‘My li'l Princess', but we're the ones accused of being mushy…
AD: Like I said…
BC: When we were young Dads, every little milestone that occurred when our kids grew up were personal moments that were meant to be cherished by us and not tom-tommed to the world, which is what you do under the guise of ‘sharing happiness'.
AD: But think of all our friends living abroad… isn't this a great way for them to connect with their extended families back home?
BC: Perhaps, but all your outpouring is obviously making Facebook a lot of money.
AD: You're referring to the IPO.
BC: That's a $5 billion extravaganza that's being powered by 845 million of us celebrating our tot's maiden venture on stage as a tree in the pre-school annual day.
AD: Why do you have such a big problem with all this?
BC: I look at these social networking sites and wonder if we are becoming too narcissistic… Is it becoming more of a ‘Hey, see how I keep coming up with these smart ones' or ‘Look at my kid — isn't she simply brilliant' slugfest where we want to outdo others to notch up more friends, more comments and more likes than the rest?
AD: Look, the world was like this even before Facebook.
BC: But today, Facebook is the world for many.
AD: I suppose you think technology should be blamed for this.
BC: Technology provides the perfect cover for people to hide behind and reveal their emotions, which is a strange contradiction in itself. And when they go overboard and are angry and upset about something, they just don't seem to be able to hold back.
AD: That's right, flaming someone isn't a good thing to do when you're online.
BC: But in extreme cases, such emotional outpouring can lead to revolts, bloodshed, change in governments.
AD: The ‘Facebook revolutions' — you're obviously referring to Egypt, Tunisia.
BC: Right!
AD: Violence, bloodshed, army attacks… just because I posted my daughter's annual day snap on Facebook?
BC: Just wait for her to grow up and comment on what she thinks of Dads who post snaps of their kid dressed like an oversized lemon. When that happens, you'll go through emotions that you wouldn't want to share with anyone.
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