I remember as a young lad we were told, by parents and teachers alike, that you could count your friends on one hand. Today, kids collect friends like we used to collect football stickers, marbles and the original Star Wars figures! ‘Best friends’ come from Facebook and MySpace, people they have never met…will it last? Is it genuine? Somehow I don’t think it will settle this way…
I’m a firm beliver that pepole have to work hard to maintain true friendships. Not sure these large netwroks of virtual friends are true friendships or will last the test of time.
Is this point of view coming from a different generational stance and will the digital generation consider friendship in a different way than I currently do???
Ian
Like most things today, working people and others with a hectic lifestyle require convienience. Internet friends are just another product of the world we live in that has resulted in many turning to disposable friends.
Its easy to make friends on the social network sites you mention and when something new comes along or they get bored with the same meaningless conversation, you have the option of blocking, ignoring or even migrating to a new site.
Internet friends are as real as and as genuine as participants in Big Brother.