The title of this article did one of two things in your mind. One: made you angry. "It's social media—I can do whatever I want! That's what it's for! Don't say you're ashamed because you probably do it too! Two: "Why would he say this? He's a millennial, too. Maybe he has something behind this. Let me check it out."

I'll admit that I had my fair share of embarrassing or silly things that I should not have posted. My eighth grade opinions of the world have less impact that my opinions now. Hardly anyone cares what I had for dinner, and no one likes to see a show-boater over social media. I get it. I am not free from the traps of social media that I am about to talk about. However, I will say that I do those things no longer. I also believe that how some people of my generation use social media is atrocious and should be a red flag for anyone who sees it, although it never is. Too many times I see a silly post talking about how mad someone is that someone else is so "terrible" for inconveniencing their life in a stupid way like sending them a message, or whatever else it may be. This leads them to vent feelings in a way that is more cowardly than anything else: behind a computer screen. Stop being a hypocrite, man. That's what you're doing now! Correct, but I do invite you to come talk to me. I would gladly say that same thing to you face to face.

My main reason to say all of this is because we all hold such great power. We can connect with people all across the globe, and we are choosing to belittle people we hardly know or just spew garbage about parties or other things that are making you fall behind everyone else in this scheme of life. Below are the reasons why I say that our generation, the ones who started this trend of social media, are also the ones who make it shameful.

1. Few can even use the English language correctly.

I will instantly dismiss whatever you have to say if you use words like "gucci," "fam," "mami," "bruh," "finna" or any other slang to state whatever societal changing opinion you have to say. First, craft a message that uses correct grammar, spelling, punctuation, conjugation and sentence structure and I just might listen to what you have to say. Also, I will disregard you if you use any emojis. Being cool and respected lies in the actions you take and the words you say rather than how you say them.

2. If you wouldn't say it to someone directly, you do not need to say it online.

This should be common sense, but I suppose that some parents did not instill this in their children. Words are powerful. They are the basis of society. Every establishment and institution falls under the jurisdiction of some piece of writing that began as the spoken word. This means that we can break someone or raise them up by just saying a few words. If you cannot fathom saying something to the face of the person who you are badmouthing on your iPhone keyboard, how can you bring yourself to say your hateful message to relative strangers online. You look silly, and you are less of a person for doing it.

3. Our options for good are endless.

Think about all the good that happens in the world. How many lives are saved each day by direct influence like a brave soldier or police officer, or by an indirect source; years of innovation in modern medicine. Think about how many people are celebrating birthdays each day, and some for the last time on earth. Think about how many children are born to wonderful families that love them. Think about how many people reach a goal they have been trying to reach for years day after day, then think about you. Are you sitting there idle and keeping your mind focused on all the bad in the world? The killers, bigots and simple downers? Do you laugh at someone less fortunate who is just trying to live their lives over social media rather than trying to help them? Are you feeding the negativity that you complain abut others bringing into the world? If you said yes, I suggest you start focusing on the good rather than the bad.

4. Good posts are ignored while the hateful and drama causing are made idols.

I will use a personal example, not because I am personally angry but rather miffed about our use of social media in general. This platform that I write for is excellent. I can basically say whatever the heck I want, and I love that. Many people like to write about the common things, or what I would call simple joys, which is fine. Too often I see articles produced by writers inside and outside of Odyssey that take great amounts of time doing research, critical thinking and contemplating if it goes too far. Most of these are swept under the rug and have very few shares or interactions because it is much easier to like the article about dorm life or your favorite "Grey's Anatomy" characters. We don't often like to have our minds stretched and opinions questioned because we see it as offensive, as per our cultural standards in the US. We need to realize that some truly brilliant material by many great people is falling through the cracks because we are not fulfilling our duty as good users of social media. We have the potential to be te smartest, most connected, ad most peaceful society earth has ever seen, but instead we are getting dumber, more hateful, less connected and overall worse people because we misuse what we are given. How sad is is that we basically have the entirety of the human knowledge base in the pocket of our hands, as well as connections all over the world, and we use to to show how much we party or how much hatred we have towards something.

One small thing I need to say before I end. I watched a video on Facebook recently that broke my heart and truly angered me to rage level and I cannot believe what people were saying about it. The video is one of a man in what looks to be a less privileged country than ours. He was at the top of a water tower and jumped, falling to his death which was all caught on camera. One of the fine men of Facebook commented, "I thought he was going to be a bouncer." Another said, "I give him a seven for the landing." How calloused an insensitive are we? We are making jokes about a man so unhappy with his life that the only thing he could choose to do was end it. Also, we watched someone die. That is just terrible and cannot put in words what it did to me.

Next time you click "post," think about what your are doing. It is no longer parents and elders that see a problem, it's people like me, too, that are fed up with your behavior.