I've ranted and raved about "text speak" in previous blogs. No full grown fucking adult should ever write "smh" or "oic", or "imho", because you are not 12, and you are not sending a text message to facebook, you are writing from a smart phone, or a computer of some sort, and therefore have access to the full goddamned alphabet.
But, that's just the tip of the iceberg of this rant. This has been a thorn in my side for years now, and I just need to get it out there for the world to read.
"Hppy Bday"
Fuckinnnnnng realllllllly.....
And, here I thought we were a higher evolved species than any other animal on the planet. We figured out how to make a language, and to put words and letters together to form sentences, and those sentences together to form paragraphs. And, yet, this shit exists.
Let's start where everyone should start, at the beginning.
Okay, so Joe Public went to Middle School with me. We were friends for years, and then we went our separate ways in high school, and lost touch completely in college. Then, FACEBOOK was invented, or conceptualized, or whatever it is that happens when you think up an idea for a website. A place online where you can rekindle old friendships, be in touch with one another and see pictures, write messages, and correspond with people you thought (and hoped with some) you'd lost contact with forever.
So, your birthday rolls around, and you wake up to 54 new messages on your Wall. "Yay!! Everyone is wishing me a happy birthday!" you think to yourself. Then, as you're perusing the wonderful things people have written you, you see that Joe Public has written "Hppy Bday". "What the fuck is that shit? 'Hppy Bday'? That's not even a sentence. Hell, that's not even two words." You see, here's how I think, versus how most people think; It's lazy, mildly disrespectful and just shows ignorance, over it being a Well Wish.
You couldn't take the extra 4 seconds to add the extra letters to make two complete words, that in fact form a complete sentence? Nor, could you add something kind, or quippy to it to make it more sentimental, or caring? No, you opted for the shortest of shortcuts to show that you acknowledge that it's my day of birth, that YOU didn't even know or remember, that a little window in the top right of a computer screen told you of this fact. So, not only did you not know it was my birthday, but then you write in Teenager Text Speak when you're closer to 40 than you are to 14.
Look at it like this:
You're at home, and a friend invites you to a really upscale, fancy Nightclub. You show up, and he's wearing an elegant suit, well tailored, cufflinks, the works. And, you wore flip flops and a tank top. You dressed like a 4 year old that's about to go play in a sandbox, and expected to walk right in alongside your friend? No, so, then why would you not make the extra effort to show him that you appreciate him, his invite, and take it seriously? Laziness? You don't respect him? Or, you could just care less?
I see it every day. I see adults doing idiotic shit (that even, I, myself am guilty of from time-to-time), that is reserved for the mentally challenged or the childlike adolescent. Yet, these are grown people. Some, even college educated (which boggles my mind even further) that are participating in the decline of an intelligent society. What example are we setting for our youth, and our next generations, when they see adults writing such idiotic banter? If you could print out some of these pages, and leave them for future historians, (if we even have Historians in the future), and they read soooooo many of these things, they'll be left to think "Wow, people were fucking stupid in the 2,000's!" or "Is that even a language?". The short answer is; "No, it's not."
To bring it back full circle...Why did we reconnect, if you aren't willing to be at least moderately interactive? After 5, 10, 20 years...you only have two chopped up words to wish me for my birthday? That's not respect. That's not a friendship. That's not something you'd write on someone's birthday card at the office, and if it is, then you're not a very polite or respectful person. If I'm not worth a few extra seconds out of your day, one day a year, then why are we even still connected?
With this twisted version of society showing its true colors more and more, it doesn't shock me to hear on the news that children respect their parents less and less. Intelligence is no longer praised, and that's scary. Respect is a dying trait. That's scarier. But, the thing that scares me the most, is that if we continue down this path, and 50% of adults are already acting like this, then what's the next generation going to be like? In a whole "I don't care what you think." world, the C Student shall rule them all.
So, to sum it all up...
As our grandmothers used to tell us, "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all.", and I'm going to add, "If you can't sound intelligent while doing so..."....then STFU!!
Rspctflly urs,
Knuckles
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