Following on the heels of the mobile phone and texting craze, the advent of Facebook and Twitter has further mutated the already patently unhealthy norms of "modern" social interaction.
People now spend steadily increasing proportions of their free time (and, quite often, work time) in the "virtual" worlds of social media networks, sitting on their haemorrhoid-packed arses in front of computer screens, in constant "communication" with their "virtual" friends, many of whom they have never physically met and wouldn't know from Adam if they passed them on the street.
Now, what really passes them by is life itself. Instead of going out, engaging in "real" activities and thus meeting others and socialising in the traditional face-to-face manner, many people choose to confine themselves to some dim room or basement (or, in the case of the perennially unemployed who "can't afford" both booze and internet access, a public library or internet cafe), browsing and typing away the hours, days, months, and years.
Such specimens may have hundreds of "Facebook friends", yet often won't have anyone they can actually talk to or spend time with. That's why I had our notional Johnno tweeting about his bowel-busting adventures from the loneliness of an otherwise unoccupied flat.
One can see plenty of these Facebook-dependent types in public libraries. I recently witnessed a pair of "males" who seamlessly fitted the cheap t-shirt stereotype of the pitiful "online creep": one was a pot-bellied, fat-necked slob, the other a spindly gnat whose shoelaces were a lot thicker than his "barbaric" limbs. Needless to say, both were prematurely balding and clad in "garments" I wouldn't even use as garage rags.
This particular dynamic duo were excitedly ogling photos of some young girl posing in a bikini on her Facebook page, and weren't exactly being subtle about it. They were so hyped up that I was half expecting them to pop their miserable little wads on the spot (but no fear of that, as testicles are a vital prerequisite...). "Go on, go on!" squeals the red-faced Shoestring "Send her a message, man, send her a message!" Too bad that Fatso was in no shape to type anything, as he was displaying all of the outward signs of having partially swallowed his tongue. Thank God that I didn't have a firearm handy...
These striking internet studs have probably never even spoken to a female (especially to a female sporting the impressive equipment of the girl in the photos), let alone touched one - despite the endless hours of porn that they've doubtlessly "utilised", they wouldn't have the remotest clue about how to (gasp, s******) "do the business", even if a "chance" miraculously presented itself in the form of some pissed-up slag...
The disgusting episode above reveals a couple of things. In all honesty, genetic crap-outs like Shoestring and Fatso would be drooling losers in any era, Facebook or not, but the fact remains that fellows like this are becoming increasingly common as products of the "social media" age - and not only with regard to the ability to find a potential wife. Kids these days are likely to spend more time playing X-Box, Playstation or PC versions of sports than engaging in the genuine thing outdoors. It's truly disconcerting to see pint-sized children glued to a computer monitor - one has to wonder about what manner of "well-adjusted" adult such kids shall become.
Then we have the important issue of privacy. In the past, privacy was something which was cultivated, respected, and invariably quite jealously guarded. People would keep to themselves and maintain barriers between their own small inner circle and their broader "non-core" range of friends and acquaintances, let alone strangers. Facebook and Twitter, however, have actively encouraged the exact opposite, conditioning people to the idea of "sharing" everything, including their most intimate details, with the "online community". This is a newer, more sinister, yet seemingly whimsical outgrowth of the voyeurism which was initially spawned and perpetuated by the "cult of celebrity" orbiting around magazines and television shows dedicated to sensationalising even the most trivial gestures made by "show-business stars".
By "sharing" their poxy little lives via social media, every idiot on the planet with access to the internet can now feel like a "celebrity" - the race for "friends" and "followers" is on, with the main means of attracting such supposed disciples conveniently consisting of posting more and more information about him or herself. But, like Riddlewire said, the material lodged on Facebook can (and without doubt is) utilised by governments - it's akin to voluntarily participating in an incipient version of an Orwellian "Big Brother" network. When one strips away the superficial "recreational" patina, Facebook and Twitter are a dictatorial government's dream come very much true.
Posting photos of oneself or one's family members online is utter madness, yet it's become an everyday practice - I should be inured to it by now, but I'm still struck anew each time I see somebody using their own photo as a forum avatar, which is quite common on may sites.
Sorry for the rant, but all of this bollocks really gets on my nerves, as the dopey population (the majority of whom have next to no personal judgement and shall unhesitatingly follow any trend - simply witness the readily-protean "tastes" in music and "fashion" and the ease with which propaganda of any persuasion can triumph within a relatively short space of time) is willingly being drawn into an all-new net of social distortion.
Finally getting back to the original question of Twitter's potential usefulness to Caste Football: despite what I have said above, if bunging out strategically-timed tweets could raise the profile of the site and consequently draw in some of the more "latently intelligent", yet currently brainwashed Negro-venerating clowns out there for the proverbial "awakening", then yes, give it a go.
Just as a parting observation about Twitter's value as a barometer (and fabricator) of public opinion, the very nature of the service makes it quite easy to manipulate. I'm sure that it wouldn't be difficult for "interested parties" to automatically flood the site with a ton of tweets propagating their particular angle on certain events, for example:
"Just like Reagan, Ron Paul is too old, best vote for the younger #Obama";
"DaQuanshon Jackson is innocent, he didn't rape that white girl, the 15 witnesses are obviously all #racists and the DNA tests were rigged";
"The guy's a blatant #anti-Semite, of course all #Jews are 100% loyal Americans whose sole allegiance is to the USA"; or even
"That arrogant Australian prick Rebajlo's posts in the notoriously #racist Caste Football forum are certainly long enough. Wish he'd just shut his big yap" :icon_wink:
