To say or not to say by @ricklipsett

Guest post from extraordinary creator of art, writer, and great human being my friend @ricklipsett. This is  post 7 on the Online Privacy Please! series I am publishing to share thoughts on issues of online privacy.

Tonight I’m gonna teach you not to mess with me. I’d love to see your face when you go lookin’ for your car and it’s not there. Tough luck, buddy!

I may be exaggerating a bit, but we’ve seen this type of post before, haven’t we? Maybe not. Maybe all you’ve read are along the lines of domestic disputes or “chillería” (spanish for unfaithfulness). Or maybe I need to change my friends on Facebook.

The other day, Raúl wrote a piece on Internet privacy. And it got me thinking about all the things I’ve seen people “talk” about on the Social Network. I understand that some times we need a friend to talk to and get rid of things we’ve been carrying around on our shoulders. Hell, even I have posted some tantrums from time to time. And not only on my status updates, but on blog posts. The difference is I always knew consequences may follow. And some have come knocking later.

We all make stupid decisions from time to time. And posting our thoughts when we are angry is one of those decisions. Spewing bile words or thoughts can and will harm someone. It may be the person that your anger is pointed towards, or it could make a U turn and bite you in the buttocks.

Some things are better left unwritten. Some things are better to say upfront, and wait for the broken nose. Some truths are best when the one that needs it has it in their hands. Some beliefs are better to keep away from those who do not agree.

It’s not about being untruthful to yourself. Instead is about knowing when to keep quiet and reserve things for yourself or simply to wait for the right opportunity to say things in person.

We’ve come to use social media so much, that we forget, we know not exactly how to approach it sometimes. The rules of engagement are different here. It’s not like when someone doesn’t want to have contact with you and you know because of the body language. In this domain, you know nothing of the person who’s reading you. You don’t even know where or what I’m doing while I write this. I could be at Church pretending to listen to mass right now, maybe I’m driving and zig zagging my way along, or in the bathroom, wrestling it out with my intestines! You, the reader, could be an angry boyfriend, a pissed off employer or an FBI agent. I haven’t the faintest. So why do we post without boundaries? Beats me.

Next time you feel like screaming, by all means, DO IT! but in your car with the windows up. Don’t write about it on Facebook with names and addresses. Frankly, no one cares, and no one needs to know.

You know what? now that I’m done, this feels like a tantrum from my part also. Guess I better prepare myself for the backlash.

photo credit by Bottled_Void