That's exactly what is so wrong with text-based forms of communication. They create a false sense of intimacy that lets people feel safe expressing things -- good or bad -- that they normally wouldn't. However, the artificial intimacy that is fostered creates an immense cognitive dissonance and incongruence when people must confront each other face-to-face, often resulting in awkwardness or worse.

Texting is turning this generation into a bunch of social-avoidant pussies.

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I'll have you know I was a social-avoidant pussy before texting ever existed.

:)

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You speak everyday in front of groups of people. I hardly think of you as a pussy. I'm talking about the avoidance of confrontation at all costs.

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In 7th grade a girl I was "dating" notified me of her intentions to break up with me by sending her newly acquired boyfriend to shove me in the hallway. I would have preferred the middle school note...or maybe even a text!

There is good stuff in this entire thread, especially in light of the original subject matter being somewhat boring to me personally. The conversation here is a "classic" example of how folks here at PH can take the mundane and make it most definitely worth reading.

I'm too lazy to plus one everyone right now, so in a close race, I'm going with musccy for making me laugh. +1 :thumbleft:

I wish the bullies in my day would have texted me instead.....

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I wish I could have dated in 7th grade. I wasn't allowed until I was a sophomore.

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I'm part of the irresponsible, young generation that's big into social networking... And I man up and appologize in real life.

I've done some dumb crap. Not a whole lot, but some. I've actually texted quite some dumb stuff, but I made my appology in real life. Not in another text afterwards.

How about looking at this like a positive? Maybe it shows character. If someone's not man enough (or woman enough) to come over and say sorry to your face, maybe that's more an indication of his/her character and not so much of something you can just blame on this generation and social networking sites.

I've found the positives to far outweigh the negatives. Opening up and starting something is easier. You might call that taking the easy way, but why not use that extra tool?

Or taking it even further... A forum is a social network in itsself. I don't know how all of you feel about me, but I do know that I feel... "close" in a certain way to a lot of people here. And I'm close to a 100% sure that I wouldn't have met any single one of you, had it not been for social networking.