I. HATE. FACEBOOK.

This blog exists because I can no longer stand using Facebook. I want to share details about my life on a platform that would neither threaten my online privacy and identity, nor profit from holding my attention.

I did say in a previous entry that I despise social media. Facebook is at the very top of that list. That wretched company should be held accountable for allowing fake news and dangerous propaganda to proliferate on their platform.

It is most convenient, of course, to have everything in one place. Facebook is a journal, an album, a newspaper, a calendar, and moreā€”but are we really supposed to have this much convenience in our lives? We no longer need to remember our friends' birthdays, because Facebook will remind us. We don't need to ask people how they've been, since scrolling down on our News Feed keeps us informed, and all we need to do to show we care is to leave a comment, or even simpler, a like or a reaction.

But, Kat, do you not enjoy convenience?

Of course, I do. I enjoy the convenience of Japanese trains, for one. Being able to travel one city to another in a matter of minutes and not having to guess when the next train is coming because trains here are always on time, unless there is a scheduled maintenance, or in the event of an unfortunate accident. I enjoy the obvious convenience of konbini. Of video calls. Of instant messaging.

But social media drives me mad. And even if I try to limit my use of it, just the fact that I have access to it makes it, and its consequences, feel inescapable. Suffocating.

What better way to freedom if not complete abstinence?

Is this the digital equivalent of reclusion?

#facebook #socialmedia