I'm sorry, readers, I can't.
"Study says Facebook users are more social, political; Ties are also said to be more persistent in Internet age" by Barbara Ortutay, Associated Press / June 17, 2011
NEW YORK — Facebook, it turns out, isn’t just a waste of time.
People who use it have more close friends, get more social support, and report being more politically engaged than those who don’t, according to a national study.
And how many have you met in person or spent lots of physical time?
The report comes as Facebook, Twitter, and even the career-oriented LinkedIn continue to engrain themselves in our daily lives and change the way we interact with friends, coworkers, and long-lost buddies from high school.
That's why I don't face or tweet -- but I do link (smile).
The report, released yesterday by the Pew Internet and American Life Project, also found that Facebook users are more trusting than their non-networked counterparts....
Related:
"Leaked emails from data security firm HBGary show the federal government is offering private intelligence companies contracts to create software to manage “fake people” on social media sites, possibly to manipulate public opinion or create the illusion of consensus on controversial issues."
Newspapers no longer getting it done, huh?
Also see: Relaxing on the Web
Yeah, take a day off, Dad.
The reason for this is not clear. One possible explanation: People on social networks are more willing to trust others because they interact with a larger number of people in a more diverse setting, said Keith Hampton, the main author of the study and a communications professor at the University of Pennsylvania....
The report did not try to dig into cause and effect, so it is not clear whether the widening use of social networks is reducing loneliness. But it did find that people who use the Internet are less socially isolated than those who don’t....
And yes, your high school classmates really are coming out of the woodwork and “friending’’ you.
I don't want to run into high school classmates. I was bullied and they act like nothing ever happened. I remember!
The average Facebook user has 56 friends on the site from high school. That’s far more than any other social group, including extended family, coworkers, and college classmates.
How sad.
Facebook’s settings let users add the high school they attended and year of graduation to their profiles. Other users can then search for their classmates and add them as friends for a virtual reunion.
Better than the real kind.
In the past, when people went to college or got jobs and moved away from their hometowns, they often left relationships behind, too. This was especially true in the 1960s, when women not in the workforce would move to the suburbs with their husbands and face a great deal of isolation, Hampton said.
Can't make new friends?
Now, with social networks, these ties are persistent.
“Persistent and pervasive,’’ Hampton said. “They stay with you forever.’’
Reminds me of the newspaper lying there on the rack.
What if I want to break it off?
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Now to that drunk deadbeat:
"Dads find more time for their children" by Hope Yen, Associated Press / June 17, 2011
WASHINGTON — The percentage of American fathers who live apart from their children has doubled over the last half-century. But, to their credit, many of today’s dads are spending more than twice as much time with their children as they did back then....
The Health and Human Services Department, in conjunction with the Ad Council, is running public service advertisements this week urging fathers to “Take Time To Be a Dad Today,’’ and the administration next week is expected to announce new support for local fatherhood programs....
Not that I'm against fatherhood; however, is that really a good use of tax dollars? Why not just send Dad a check so he can keep the family out of foreclosure?
I'm sure Dad has had plenty of time; now how about getting him a good, decent-paying job so he can be a Dad and provide for his family?
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What is this crap passing for news in my newspaper, readers? Why is it all divisive slop?
