Free from Facebook

Telephone switchboard operators, Alberta Government Telephones, Edmonton, Alberta, 1926

Hey, fellow Albertans, remember AGT (Alberta Government Telephones) and how we all hated that regulated organization back in the day? Well, maybe not everyone hated the communication service, but as a kid the only comments I remember from my seniors about it were negative. Mostly it was all about the cost of long distance calling and the occasional service fee price hike. “Costs so damn much to make a call anymore…”

Remembering AGT made me consider Facebook. That corporation allegedly reads our personal messages and sells the information therein to make money. And we are pretty much cool with that. Imagine if AGT would’ve pulled a stunt like that, eavesdropping on our private conversations and selling anything useful they heard to an interested third party. We would’ve burned telephone effigies in front of our local AGT offices.

Listen to me read this post:

AGT office in Delburne, Alberta; photo from albertahistoricplaces.wordpress.com

So why aren’t we terribly offended when we hear that Facebook could be eavesdropping on all of us, scanning for juicy information it can profit from? Because Facebook is free and it will always be. The service provided by AGT cost money.

However, the biggest obstacle to Facebook ever changing its devious ways is not Facebook’s legal department, but rather, public apathy. It seems most people just don’t care that their private information is being read, recorded and sold to companies. “So what?” people ask. “I have nothing to hide, so why should I worry?”  ~ Rebecca Savastio, The Guardian, 2014

Like LUSH Cosmetics’ advertisements, my unpaid ad posts were choked off from my audience, the 1073 folks who had liked my Facebook page. I was asked to pay for advertising. Even when I did, the reach was pretty pathetic. So for me and what I needed it for, Facebook was not free.

I still enjoy being off Facebook. Time away has really freed up my mind. I didn’t realize how much time I spent considering what to post and then creating those posts. I craved the likes and wanted the attention. Facebook depended on the fact that I was seeking attention. My content helped drive their machine.

I do miss interactions with several people who don’t communicate with me outside of Facebook. I get it. Facebook is convenient and the feedback from it, negative or positive, is immediate. There’s satisfaction in that along with a sweet little dopamine hit. I liked it too, the attention and the rush, but what I like more is being free from Facebook.

Thanks for being here with me today. If you want to stay connected even though I’m not on Facebook, follow me here on WordPress. That would be great.

Take care and enjoy life.

~ Lori