When I first got Facebook back in eighth grade, it was the bomb. Or should I say, it was "beast." Our news feeds were highly populated with "Truth is..." posts, photos edited with Picnik and the always frequent statuses that asked important questions like, "Can we pretend that airplanes in the night sky are like shootin' stars?"

But ever since then, Facebook has declined in its popularity. Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat have taken over. For those of us who still use Zuckerberg's creation, the blue app icon on our phones is symbolic of a last resort. When you are up-to-date on all other social media, when no one is texting you back and you've seen everyone's Snapchat stories, then you open Facebook, hoping that something of interest will appear on the screen. Most of the time, the only thing that seems to keep literal tumbleweeds from floating down our news feeds are those 30 second recipe videos.

However, when any important or controversial event happens (as has happened so often lately), Facebook becomes a war zone. People seem to crawl out of the woodwork, posting links to articles, sharing videos and expressing their opinion in heated statuses.

Now, I fully admit to being one of these people. Important things need to be said and heard, and social media is an effective platform for getting the word out. That being said, depending on who your Facebook friends are, this experience can either be quite empowering or completely infuriating.

You probably know that feeling of seeing something on Facebook that is so perfect that it just wants to make you say, "yaaaaaaaaas" and immediately hit the share button. You probably also know the feeling of seeing a status that really just makes your blood boil.

Both of these posts are important. You see, I've seen people post that "I'm unfriending anyone on here that posts anything else supporting [insert controversial opinion here]." And I get the emotion behind that. It's so incredibly angering to see people with which you at some time or another and in some form acquainted yourself post something that to you seems so clearly ignorant/misguided/morally wrong/hateful/idiotic. However, as much as I don't want to see these things ... I do. I'm not going to unfriend these people that I disagree with. (Granted, that they're not personally attacking me or are unhealthy to my own personal mental health or safety.) I am going to push through the intense emotion that they make me feel, and read them for two reasons.

1. Not everything I disagree with is wrong.

Sometimes I'm the ignorant one. Even if I feel absolutely certain about my position, it can't hurt to hear other perspectives. Who knows, maybe the introduction of new facts will change my mind.

Or perhaps, it's not new facts that are important to hear, but a new perspective. As a privileged white American, seeing things from others people's perspectives is critical. I know, for example, that I do not have the right to insert my voice into the Black Lives Matter conversation until I have tried my absolute hardest to understand the movement from the point of view of the people it most directly affects. I don't know and can't know what it's like to black, but I can listen to the voices of black Americans and hear what they have to say. Facebook is a great platform for me to find and listen to these voices.

2. Sometimes, I'm right.

Now, "right" can often be up for interpretation. What I mean is that sometimes I have done my research, and I truly believe that my position on a topic is backed up by facts and morals. In this case, seeing these Facebook posts that seem to me to be so misguided is important, because it lets me know what I'm up against. It allows me to be aware of what people on the other side of an argument are saying and how they're thinking. I believe that if you're going to be arguing a position, you need to be prepared. Part of that preparation is listening to your opponents. How are you going to convince anyone that you're right if you don't bother to listen to what they have to say?

So, if scrolling through your Facebook news feed makes you want to scream, I feel you. But don't unfriend those maddening "friends" out of frustration. Try to contain your anger, and instead think of this as a learning experience. Taking the time to listen to people who make you want to rip your hair out will do one of two things: change your mind, or make your own argument even stronger.