The Harmful Aspects of Facebook

Social media transforms how we talk to people -- it gives us new ways of communicating with each other, and it lets the public catch up on various events quite easily. Social media is huge now. Facebook being testament to just how massive it has become.

Facebook started out small, but it expanded into a brand that has honestly changed lives. Facebook attracts at least one billion users every month, placing it at the center of our society's values. Facebook impacts our world significantly, but it carries some notable defects. I would actually argue that Facebook is more of an annoyance in today's world than anything else.

One reason as to why Facebook is not needed, is for its potential for creating unhappiness. According to the BBC, people's pleasure with their lives "declined" as they used the site more. Facebook makes people less happy with who they are, and it aids loneliness. Facebook lets its users appear happy and content, but it's actually inviting unfavorable comparisons to others. Seeing people doing fun things on Facebook while you're just sitting on the couch, watching another re-run of "The Big Bang Theory," will make you wonder what you are doing with your life. Observing the bliss of others on the site decreases overall satisfaction, which leads to the unhappiness that was discussed by the BBC.

Another reason for Facebook's lack of relevance is its encouragement of impudent behavior. In 2011, the Villa Rica Police Department admitted that it got "one to three complaints a week" about events involving harassing and stalking others on Facebook. The department also noted that they expected these problems to "increase." This demonstrates another flaw with Facebook- the simplicity of communicating with others on Facebook, as well as the ability to easily and freely comment on users' posts and photos, invites harmful treatment of others. People can cyber-bully their peers quite easily on Facebook, and they can get away with it due to the fact that they are behind a computer screen. Facebook encourages this kind of discourteous behavior, and the site is not needed due to this.

In general, Facebook is not a necessary force in today's society. The site leads to unhappiness, comparing yourself unfavorably with others, and the opportunity to harass your peers. Facebook is not needed in the modern world: it causes too much harm to truly be useful.