Addicted to the Self

Humans love company of other humans and facebook provides a meeting place for peoples even if separated by distance. In that sense, facebook is a good thing. But I am getting fed up of nonsense comments, cheap debates, shallow quotes, oh-notice-me pictures, the-more-twisted-the-better videos, and self-obsessed status updates that flood the site. Everyone seems to be doing all sorts of things to get noticed and to be celebrated. To feel wanted and loved is natural but to be over-obsessed, yes, even addicted to oneself is a sickness. Attention-mongers we are. We all want to be stars. If other people don’t notice us, we feel like we have ceased to exist.

I am no celebrity fanatic and correct me if I am wrong. I think Lindsay Lohan was famous, so she became spoilt, while it’s the other way round for Paris Hilton. Paris became famous not by virtue of any talent but simply because she was spoilt. Either way, to be a spoilt brat has even become a desirable thing; or the more spoilt one becomes, the more attention one gets. And to be noticed is the only way to becoming a celebrity. The Royal Wedding was nothing but a celebrity marriage spectacle. I wish the couple well but the fact that they belong to the royal family doesn't make any difference to the world (except of course, being curious where the money came from to pay for such an expensive celebration). I am not a citizen of a British colony either. There's no other explanation for our fascination for the couple except that the world today worships celebrities. Celebs are the objects of our deepest desires.

To meet a Cricketer star is advertized as the prize for winning a lucky draw from among people who bought a particular cold drinks brand or answered a simple question on TV. Slumdog millionaire kids we are waiting for that particular breakthrough to finally rise above the clouds. If it has started raining outside, we update our status about it in facebook as soon as we can before anyone else does (sorry weatherman). To come second is to lose it all. To be average is to be a nobody.

But if I think this way, why am I still in facebook? I saw Raito, son of a friend in Singapore, in facebook a few days after he was born. I saw him grow in facebook and it was such a delight to actually see him in person last Christmas when his family came home to Pfutsero. Punesayi, a friend of mine in Laos who is also a great photographer has some beautiful photos uploaded. Samuel Vaiphei puts up interesting links in facebook through which I have downloaded video lectures and articles. Moba puts up very weird status updates which are hilarious and makes me miss him. Azhoni passes good comments on my writings which are always encouraging. I check on my cousin Nuvoyo in Pune to see if he’s studying properly or not. It’s nice to chat again with old classmates who had been out of touch for several years. For reasons like these, I am still in facebook.

I am also equally happy that Dr. Kevi deactivated his facebook account recently. Good for him.