Recently there has been a debate around the office concerning social networking sites, specifically Facebook. These days it is becoming a sad fact that people would rather send you and e-mail or a text message rather than call you on the phone or (gasp!) talk to you in person. Social networking sites have become enablers to this new trend of social phobic socializing. So, being the adapting person that I am, instead of rejecting this brave new world of internet and cell phones, I have decided to embrace it. The question now is: what are the new unspoken social rules of this new social game?

The debate in the office started when my co-worker Bruce pointed out that having too many facebook friends is pointless. Whenever someone tried to add him as a friend whom Bruce didn’t deem worthy of his friend list, he would sweetly deny the friend request. I promptly disagreed with him. My reasoning is the fact that facebook is not the only socializing that you will have with your friends, and I believe that facebook is only a tool to look someone up or keep in touch with someone you may have not been able to keep in touch with on a normal basis (for example it’s a little difficult/expensive to talk to my Canadian friends on the phone let alone in person).

I personally feel that if someone is picky about what friends they add they are saying that facebook isn’t “social networking,” it’s socializing with the people that you would socialize with anyway. What’s wrong with a childhood friend looking you up years later to see how your life turned out? Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think that people should be completely lax with their friend list… there are some weirdoes out there.

All I am saying is there is nothing wrong with accepting a friend even if you haven’t talked to them for ten years. They might even shoot you a message letting you know they are still in the area and the two of you should meet up for coffee. Look at that! I real life friend! That wasn’t so hard, was it?