Hi Ron and Bob,
In a world of increasing social media ubiquity, I am perhaps an anomaly in that despite being in my early forties and working in advertising, I am not on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Snapchat, Twitter or any other platform for that matter (1), and neither is anyone else in our family.
There are a bunch of reasons why (time being one), but the overwhelming factor is the protection of our privacy online. We are the parents of three young children, who are growing up in a culture obsessed with self-image vis-à-vis the Other (i.e. "I am who I am perceived to be") and the proliferation and leveraging of their ‘status’ via virtual means manifest in "likes" and "views". Look, I get it - as I believe I’ve said only recently, it’s the artist not the brush. It’s stupid to get upset because someone might misuse a tool, of course. But to me, it seems equally stupid to ignore the socio-cultural oceanic morass that has formed around its usage, and the insistent power of the current that drags many into cruel exchanges belittling our ability to communicate and interact with one another with some semblance of humanity, leading many to create identities for themselves that actively undermines any notion of authenticity of self.
In an effort to lead by example to our pre-teen children, we feel it’s better to sacrifice whatever upside there might be to having a presence online (in which our real identities are commodified for profit) in order to safe-guard their intellect and emotions against the many downsides as they head toward a future which will likely only become more commodified and more virtual. Though I appreciate many here will feel differently, our take is that a degree of anonymity can be a wonderful thing, given that even the news stories I click on in order to stay informed about the world I live in can be used to create data that collates my personal information for the purposes of targeted marketing to fuel an agenda of unbridled invasive capitalism, in which I the consumer no longer choose the products - the products choose me.
For those that feel differently, I pass no judgement on their willingness to use their real names and identities here. And should more wish to do so, then I can only commend them for their transparency. It’s just not for me, and despite the gratitude I feel to be part of this “community” I’ll continue to participate anonymously.
Best,
853guy*
*Not my real name.
(1) I am a member of two forums however, this and an F1 site, reduced down from many previous ones for the sake of my sanity.
You are right to do this, IMO. The social media sites have been ENGINEERED to attract and addict people. It is not an accident, it is exploitation of human "blindspots". Steve Jobs would not let his children play with the Ipad for example...
spiritofmusic said:853, I love your turn of phrase, and pretty much agree w you 100%.
I have plenty of my own reasons to not to go too far into the virtual world, indeed WBF is the only online thing I personally contribute to.
And like all the best Marvel super heroes, I prefer to keep my identity secret and have my alter ego moniker only.
853guy. You are one very, very wise father.
I no longer have young children but even one of my grown daughters is afflicted by acquiring "likes" etc. And one of my granddaughters (she's 12) has an iPhone permanently attached to her left hand, already posting on some of the various sites Very difficult to observe.
Raising children has never been an easy task. But I sure would not want to be doing so today.
Keep up the good work Mr. 853guy!! I highly commend you!
As for posting a picture of myself? If it is critical for someone to figure out what I look like, there are ways to do that.
As a side story, I met my wife on eHarmony about 10 years ago. And you are encourage to provide multiple photos of yourself. One of my posted photos was of Robert Redford with the sub caption of: "me, prior to my face lift". So I guess I could post that photo here
Hello gents,
After Evan Williams left Twitter he and his wife ensured their children had limited access to technology, and instead invested in organic farming techniques and actual physical books (1).
That we're moving toward that sort of thing with our own kids, with limited screen time only on certain days and for a short period of time with no internet access doesn't mean we've eliminated technology completely (our ten year-old has an AKAI MPC Touch to make music on connected to a lap top), just that we prefer to keep a very low technology and online profile in general.
Says the man, who spends eighteen hours a day online, as a freelancer to advertising clients in nine countries around the world. Someday I hope and pray the that the status quo of "do as I say not as I do" will dissipate more rapidly, but PSET amps and custom mountain bikes don't grow on trees, right? (2)
Best,
853guy
(1) As told to Nick Bilton in "Hatching Twitter: A True Story of Money, Power, Friendship, and Betrayal". Recommended.
(2) Having your hypocrisy exposed by your children is one of life's more humbling experiences. I except this to occur more frequently as they approach their teenage years.
I don't judge other people's choice, .
Bob, thank you for your sweet comments, but, as usual, I have absolutely no idea what you're talking about.
Bob, thank you for your sweet comments, but, as usual, I have absolutely no idea what you're talking about.
To be somewhat on topics
I love photography