I Quit Facebook.

I quit Facebook. I did it about a week ago, but now I’m bothering to tell everyone.

My reasons for this are manifold, and any one of them is a good enough reason to leave the platform, but I’ll state them here for those interested. This has nothing to do with any individual or contretemps or drama I may or may not have been involved in. I’m not leaving in a huff or anything remotely like that. The only reason why you’re able to read this on Facebook right now is because I’ve shared it from my blog to my Facebook page. I’ll continue to do that, as you nice people who do use Facebook shouldn’t be deprived of my wit and wisdom. Ahem.

Informed readers know that the Facebook contractors who curate Facebook’s “Trending Topics” section have done so with an eye toward minimizing conservative news. Not because people on the right side of the ideological spectrum don’t do or say anything newsworthy, but because the leftists in charge of curating the Trending Topics loathe conservatives and seek to destroy them at every opportunity, like almost everyone in media. With that in mind, why should I spend my time, my bandwidth, my attention on a service administrated by people who hate me and anyone who shares my outlook? Why should I participate in their social experiments, post my family pictures for them to look at (and potentially use in prurient fashion; I put nothing past these vermin)?

Everyone likes to complain about politically-dominated organizations like Hollywood, social media companies, and news outlets, but few actually do anything about it. This is my way of doing something about it: I’m opting out. I’m under no illusions that this little gesture will elicit even the slightest change, but I’m hoping that some of you will think about these issues and join me. If you’re a conservative, Facebook doesn’t want you and actively wishes you ill. Is this a place where you should spend your time?

Yes, I know I’m sneaking a toe in the door by having my blog link my individual posts to Facebook, but as a writer I’ve been told that I need to have a social media presence. So I’m using Facebook in this minimal fashion without letting it use me.

The other reason why I left Facebook is because it promotes bitchiness, backbiting, and passive-aggressive snark, none of which are the least bit healthy for even the strongest psyche. It’s possible, even likely, that all social media is conducive to this kind of negativity, but Facebook’s the big dog, so they get the most attention. What people Like, what they don’t Like, what they talk about online, what they ignore: paying attention to that, to the facade of minutiae masquerading as day-to-day life, drains energy from positive pursuits. It’s also a massive time-sink, and you’d be amazed at how much time you find in the day to do good things when you’re not spectating other people’s facades.

I already miss the many cyber-friends I’ve met on Facebook. I very much enjoyed looking at your family photos, reading your posts, laughing at your memes, watching your cat videos, and mindlessly Liking (some of) your book links. And I know how tenuous, how ephemeral these electronic friendships are; for many of you, this will be the last time we communicate. That’s a shame, but to quote the great Northeastern philosopher DB, “It is what it is.”

Before long I’ll set up an account on some photo-sharing service and send the link to those friends and family members who would want to see pictures of my wife and son. I’m very proud of both, as you know, and incredibly lucky to have them. The rest of my updates, both personal and professional, will be posted here at http://davedauthor.com/blog.

You can, of course, always contact me via email. I use Gmail, and my handle is davedauthor.

I hope to hear from you.