You go home after a long day and sit in front of your computer screen, replaying the day's events. Something someone said really set you off, but instead of calling the person out and explaining why you are upset, you log on to twitter and post a spiteful tweet that is clearly about that person.

Social media is this generation's main way of connecting with one another. It allows people to talk and express their feelings without actually confronting others face-to-face, which can have many negative aspects. The accessibility of social media is arguably the largest factor in the growing cyber-bullying problem today. People feel a sense of power when they are behind a screen because they can openly voice all of their harshest opinions without having to actually speak to another person. Oftentimes, they do it for the attention: people believe that attacking another person who is not necessarily liked will make them more popular, or that others will think that they are funny for making cruel comments about another person.

However, that is exactly what these comments are: cruel. Our generation is a generation of cowardice — we can type out horrible posts about other people but would often immediately turn away the chance to say these same things face-to-face. Bullying online is even crueler than in-person because it has the ability to reach more people, and thus do more damage to the victim. Although a tweet or status on social media may seem funny and harmless to you, it could be humiliating to the person it is about. It is all too easy to be selfish and only think about your own feelings when posting things online, but take a minute to think about the person you are posting about. We have all heard the saying, “everyone is fighting their own battle." This rings especially true to the issue of cyber-bullying: everyone is going through his or her own personal struggle, and you never know what the last straw could be. Especially for self-conscious teens and young adults, being publicly humiliated could easily be the tipping point that makes someone contemplate suicide have a nervous breakdown or a psychological break.

So, be kind. Treat others the way you want to be treated. Worry more about being a good person than about how many "favorites" you get on a website.