Fakebook: The destruction of a person?

No, this is not a particularly original idea... but I am looking forward to having a quick chat about Facebook (or Fakebook, as I affectionately describe it).

Does it enrich our lives, or does it simple allow us to waste more time?

I'm in two minds about this.

In one corner we have a fantastic communication tool, that allows us to chat to friends and keep up to date with our interests. In the other corner, we have a conventional suppression machine that takes up our time and bugs us with what we might like.

Despite this, I am guilty.

I am guilty of using Facebook. I like it. I suppose I am a 'medium' user, where I check in everyday and see what my friends are up to. I may also post a thought provoking or funny image I have found. It's a bit of fun. Through Facebook I have been invited to parties and business events, that I would probably have missed out on. So, for me... Facebook is an extension of my social circle. It's important that I 'know' everyone on my friend list. If you're on my friend list, it means I would stop and have a coffee with you if we crossed paths in the city. I don't like having 'friends' on there who are either old school 'acquaintances' or random individuals who are a friend of a friend. No, that's not for me. So, if you're on my friend list, lets meet up for a coffee!

Facebook is an extension of social interaction.

So, what happens if the opposite were to come into effect? What if I immersed myself in the 'social' world of Facebook? Would it then become Fakebook?

I predict I would make lots of new 'friends', and soon my friend list would exceed 500, maybe even 1000 people. That's a lot of cups of coffee. I would most likely loose myself within a paradoxical spiral of 'likes' and 'pokes' that would, over time, determine how I value peoples opinions and acceptance of me. Maybe Fakebook isn't such a great idea. I don't get out as much, as the concept of interacting with a real person 'face-to-face' is beyond my skill set. My social skills have been worn thin, due to the 'control' I have over my relationship with 'people' online...

I could go on.

The virtual world has been explored in thousands of science-fiction novels and films... so we're all familiar with the concept of 'what is real.'

Could Facebook be the beginning of the end? Is it big brother disguised as a friendly social tool? Name your conspiracy theory and attach it to Fakebook. Is it the destruction of a person?

Well, yes.

If you let it...