Not sure if you’ve noticed lately, but Facebook is a bit shit. It’s not just that they’re data stealing, manipulative, mentally damaging and time wasting tech bastards… Oh and they’re also in the shit for antitrust too….
So it’s not just all that.
It’s also that the platform itself has become a huge stinking pile of doggy doo. It’s gone from being quite an easy to manage channel where you could connect with friends, play a few games and share some pictures. To becoming perhaps one of the most badly cluttered apps out there.
What is Facebook even trying to be at this point?
I’ll tell you. It’s basically an advertising platform where you share your interests and general data, and Facebook find brands to show you on your feed.
Sorry – I’m saying Facebook and I should be saying Meta.
Which is also another point about how exceptionally shit Facebook now is.
Scandal upon scandal upon scandal… Oh look!
You may remember that the Cambridge Analytica scandal flagged up some of the huge problems with Facebook’s shameless data grab and societal manipulation.
Behind the scenes Team Zuckerberg had been allowing shady companies to collect data about their users and then send them mind altering content. A drip drip drip of fake news and general bullshit.
Worse still, it even turned out that Facebook were basically complicit in this under the guise of ‘freedom of speech’.
So we end up with lies that lead to the rise of the alt-right in the USA and the MAGA/Trump movement. The same movement also leads to Brexit in the UK (the very definition of mis-selling a political motive through disinformation and misinformation), genocide in Myanmar and maniuplated elections in the Caribbean and around the world.
Wondering why the world seems despairingly polarised right now? Yeah, a lot of that is down to Facebook. Or at least the ease of spreading disinformation.
If you haven’t seen the Netflix film The Great Hack then it really is an eye-opener about how fucked Facebook is.
Facebook also had a sticky hand in the Brazilian elections that saw right wing nutjob and Amazon burner Jair Bolsonaro come to power.
To top this off, the news that Facebook knows that it has a harmful effect on society but shrugged it off as just part of it’s appeal also doesn’t sit well.
And then, as if to dodge the shit being slung his way, Mark Zuckerberg proudly proclaims that the Metaverse is the future.
So Facebook will now be Meta!
Meta won’t be better
The Metaverse, for those not in the know, is a kinda of virtual reality world which is currently where people who play role playing games spend a lot of their time.
For the rest of us?
It seems that Zuckerberg sees the future of human existence as taking place in a sort of avatar driven virtual world. One which will shift lots of their Oculus headsets and probably require some sort of premium subscription to Meta’s future platform.
Who knows, maybe he’s right.
Maybe instead of Zoom meetings we’ll all be hanging out in a virtual cafe with our bored monkey avatars discussing work and whatever. And if we need to order groceries, we can just slip into our VR headset and go down to the virtual shops to order our food to be delivered by robot. Or something.
Except, let’s be honest… We probably won’t will we?
Your data isn’t safe
Despite the fact that Facebook have been caught out multiple times by both mishandling data and outright selling it to shady bastards (see Cambridge Analytica), they just keep getting more fingers pointed at them.
Remember when they bought WhatsApp? They basically made it so that they could analyse some of the data used in WhatsApp conversations to target your ads better. Not necessarily what you were discussing (thats off limits thankfully), but the time or location you used Whatsapp or other apps on your phone that interact with WhatsApp.
That did kinda get closed down. But these fucktards don’t really care about your data in the same way you do. In short, they want the scoop on people so they can hit you with more ads.
Health warnings required
I mentioned that Facebook knows it’s bad for people’s health. But they don’t care… So scrolling through endless crap on your timeline about how 5G causes covid, or looking at sexy influencers advertising vapes or whatever, well thats just free speech. And it’s probably also the algorithms.
Yes, using Facebook too much can cause social anxiety, depression, general mental health problems, body dysmorphia, anorexia and even a bit of addiction. After all those dopamine hits from likes and follows are just sooooo good.
And the other issue is you just spend so much time scrolling and scrolling and scrolling and scrolling. And do you feel better after?
Do you feel like that time you’ve spent with Facebook instead of, I don’t know, with your family or friends, is well spent?
Probably not right. But, you’ll be back again. And again.
You get the idea. Facebook is shit.
Instagram is also shit.
How to remove yourself from Facebook
A lot of people find it hard to remove themselves from Facebook and their ecosystem of apps because they are quite useful. Facebook itself now has that marketplace thing, and there are events and whatever.
Instagram… Well, I don’t know about Instagram, it’s just a waste of time if you ask me.
So here are my top tips for removing yourself from Facebook.
- Step one: Stop and think about how much Facebook (and Instagram) wastes your time
- Step two: Don’t use it for a few days. It’s hard to start with but eventually you won’t miss it. When you get the urge, stop and look around at the world and take some time to pay attention to reality…
- Step three: Make one post about how you’re going to leave Facebook and Instagram and tell people if they want to get in contact to use your preferred messaging service.
- Step three: Find a new hobby, or start doing something productive with your free time. And don’t post it on social media.
- Step four: Give it a few days and give zero fucks about the likes or comments on that last post. You’ll suddenly realise that you really don’t care…
- Step five: Delete your account.
- Step six: Enjoy all that free time!
Check out our tips on minimalism too which are a great way to get off Facebook.
And thats it. Facebook is shit. Take back control of your free time, your data and your mental health. Good luck!
