The Reason I’m “Unfriending” You

Insert Sarcastic Quote Here

Hello there. It’s been awhile since last we spoke but, due to the emergence of networking sites, you and I have come in contact again after years of seperation. For awhile I thought it was cool that I could see what you were up to, what your thoughts were, what you liked or disliked. But here recently, with all of the political, ecological, religious and outright hateful posts that have been filling up my personal Facebook stream, I’ve decided it’s time to say our goodbyes. I remember when we were kids/teenagers/20-somethings/parents/co-workers and I look back on those times with fondness and I remember the good old days, but here recently, I have come to realize that we are just two completely different people who have grown far apart in our ideology and that’s okay. I mean, we all have our ways of thinking and I respect that! But I figure it’s all for the best if I keep the memory I have of you from “back in the day” than to allow your updates and posts to start to stress me out. It’s not that I don’t respect your thoughts, it’s just that I don’t share the same and in a lot of cases, I find your thoughts to be completely backwards from my own.

I think it is a good thing to hear opposite opinions. It’s contructive and helps shape who I am personally. However after the onslaught of negativity and complete disregard for the feelings of others on networking sites that I use often, I made a pact with myself…get through the election, see if things quiet down, and go from there. So I did. And yet still I find myself getting frustrated with your thoughts and positions on certain subjects. It’s not that they’re opposite of my own, it’s that there seems to be a complete refusal to even consider that others feel differently. So, for this reason, I have decided to “unfriend” you. I’m not mad at you, I’m not frustrated with you, I am simply choosing to keep my personal space and to remember you as you once were. Someday, maybe when I’m in my travels, we might meet again and then we can sit down, have some coffee and have an in-depth conversation about your thoughts on the election, abortion, homosexuality, our nation’s military or any other topic you feel is important however, at this time in my life, I don’t feel social networks are the place to be making statements that can’t be discussed and researched in a constructive manner.

My interest in social networking is strictly for entertainment. Am I happy to have made friends with you again? Absolutely. I have fond memories of our time together. But now I think it best that we part ways again and remember the good times. It’s in the best interest of our friendship and the memories. Humor has always been a huge part of my life. I am sarcastic and open to a fault. At times, this has been a sticking point with me because I use sarcasm and humor to try to get points across. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. Either way, you have some very strong ideals and I can’t argue with those. But let’s face it…I’m not going to change, you’re not going to change, and so with that as a sticking point and with the internet being sometimes hard to navigate when it comes to tone, I say we just move on and not feel badly about it.

Once again, thank you for being my friend. I will remember you fondly and I’m sure that if we are ever in contact again, we can get along nicely without our ideology getting in the way. But for now, as far as social networking goes, I wish to keep my space and as Willy Wonka might say…”Goodbye. Adieu. Aufwiedersehen. Gesundheit. Farewell.”