This And That

No major theme today, just a few random observations.
First, I just got blocked for 30 days from “friending” anyone on FACEBOOK. Now, did I send a request to someone under age or did I use vile language or am I one of the unattractive Kardashians?
No.
I use FACEBOOK primarily as a way to network, much like LINKEDIN. Since I do PR in the health/medical field, I occasionally send out “friend requests” to people who describe themselves as health, medical or science writers.
I got docs, they need docs. I got story ideas, they need stories. Seems logical, a natural connection.
Plus, if you’ve ever been on Facebook, you know they’ll recommend people you can friend, people who match up well to you given your FB activity, etc…now do they think I physically have met, intimately KNOW all these people?
Of course not. But if I try to friend them, I’m given the waggly-old-lady-finger-of-accusation from the FB minions, declaring that I am “UNMUTUAL,” or “IN VIOLATION OF GENERAL ORDER 24” or some such nonsense that means I can’t friend people for a month.
What is the purpose of Facebook, other than to make connections, friends, to network, to share ideas, to COMMUNICATE?
Now I’m not suggesting there shouldn’t be safeguards to keep people from being harassed with requests from spammers, the lunatic fringe, people who still watch SURVIVOR, etc.
But in fact, there ARE such safeguards already…it’s called the “IGNORE” button.
When I get FB friend requests from women 30 years my junior who hail from Slavic countries that have a grand total of 13 friends, none of whom I know, I’m smart enough to hit IGNORE.
Why must I be censured? Why must I be threatened with being CAST OUT like Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden, like Lucifer hurled down from the Heavens, like a fat man forced to leave the ALL YOU CAN EAT buffet even though he clearly had not eaten his fill? Clearly, these are rhetorical questions. It seems every other day there's something new that Facebook tosses at us that gets us all riled up again, usually having something to do with "Privacy Settings" or the total inability, despite claims otherwise, that I can in fact stop people from sending me "Game Requests."
Well, enough of that. That’s the “THIS.” Now here’s the “THAT” for today’s blog.
I noted today that New England Patriot’s receiver Wes Welker's wife, Anna Burns Welker, decided to vent her frustrations on the Pats’ 28-13 AFC Championship game loss to the Ravens on Facebook, directing her venom at NFL Hall of Fame shoe-in, Ray Lewis. As the New York Post reported today, she declared, "Proud of my husband and the Pats. By the way, if anyone is bored, please go to Ray Lewis' Wikipedia page. 6 kids 4 wives. Acquitted for murder. Paid a family off. Yay! What a hall of fame player! A true role model!"
Of course, there’s a saying. Those who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones. Since her statement, Ms. Welker has been eviscerated by pro-Ravens, pro-Baltimore, pro-Ray Lewis, and pro-people-with-class factions for her insensitive, hardly-accurate invective.
As my mother used to say, “Consider the source.” What has Ms. Welker done to enhance society besides win a “Miss Hooters” title (clearly a member of the Algonquin Roundtable...NOT)? As ESPN has reported, “Lewis has dedicated himself to giving back to the Baltimore community and to kids. He does extensive work in the community for the Ravens, some things that are publicized and others that are not. Lewis distributes school supplies to kids before each year. He distributes meals at Thanksgiving and Christmas, and provides toys for kids at Christmas.” Read more here: http://espn.go.com/nfl/playoffs/2012/story/_/id/8803657/ray-lewis-unques....
But society has changed. People were once raised to “take the high road,” not to be embittered in defeat, not to lash out either with one’s fists or one’s words when absorbing the pain of a loss. It was called “good sportsmanship.” And it was also called “having class.”
As a PR person, if I represented a celebrity, a sports figure, someone in the public eye, I would ask that person, next time they planned to lash out in the “heat of the moment,” to ask themselves, “Does this past the Parent Test?”
Contemplate your mother, your father, or just whomever that parental figure is in your life that you strive to be like, to earn the respect of, to show your love for…Now imagine how that person would react when you put yourself in a public platform, doing your best “sore loser” impression possible.
If the thought of that person as your specific audience makes you cringe, chances are you’ll stop, take a breath, think better of it, and NOT post something really stupid on Facebook that you can never take back and will follow you around for YEARS.
When I eventually retire, I would like to volunteer my services as a PR counsel to the Baltimore Orioles and the entire Oriole organization, for example, to work with players AND their families as to how best to deal with the media and situations like this.
One would think, well, these organizations already have staff to handle this, etc. But if so, why, oh, why do we continue to see players, their wives, their significant others, spouting off, making the organizations which they represent, either directly or indirectly, look like, well, CRAP?
And that’s this and that for today.