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No kidding! When all of this began to explode, things like MSN and Facebook, I originally thought that it would only really affect teenagers writing skills. I remember sitting in class in grade 12, and our teacher was telling us the horror stories of the grade 9's who would actually use "MSN-speak" in their essays. We were horrified personally, and I thought jeeze, how is this going to affect people intellectually. Nevermind the effects of sitting at your computer for hours on end and messing with your health in different ways.
Now it's a whole other thing, I admit, I find it easier to text than call someone especially if I'm in a situation where I don't feel like calling. It's not just because half the people I know live cities away but because it's just easier and the phone calls that I actually do have, don't last really long except for the occasional hours long conversation. Now it's really catching on, cell phone carries are pushing deals like unlimited texting and phones that make it ridiculously easier to text as well.
I think it also has to deal with the fact that people tend to feel more comfortable in their own homes, lurking on Facebook than actually going out sometimes. It doesn't necessarily bring anonymity but a certain degree almost. That's why people find online chatrooms so alluring because you don't have to interact with people, and the potential awkwardness that comes with that, and you can say whatever you want because it's anonymous.
But I guess we'll see what this does to friendships in the coming years. I know through studies in sociology, that compared to forty years ago, the amount of people that you consider really close friends has minimized to almost zero. We feel that these days, there isn't anybody, not even really your family, who you can talk to about serious problems.
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