---
OPINION
7A
FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 1
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
How I broke the Internet addiction
Hi, my name is Nick. I'm a Facebook-aholic. Thanks for letting me share my story. I just wanted to say that I can no longer cheat on my real life and replace it with a digital alternative. A long list of friends is not superior to a few breathing ones. I have seen the writing on the Wall — particularly the poor grammar, the hacked-out comments, the bizarre abbreviations and the excess of inside jokes from my "friends."
The great web of relationships that I've woven means nothing without content to go with them. I know these people in name only. I now know more about people I don't care about, but less about those I care the most about.
While under the influence, I looked for meaning where none existed and wasted too much time on relationships that never were. In between I wrote too many words that meant nothing.
The pervasive ugliness of Facebook has ruined me. The rampant narcissism, gossip and triviality did me in.
No, actually I'm less than a man. I've reduced myself to a profile page. I am a picture with a description — a photo exhibit at an art museum. The authorship is clear, but the photographer is unknown. The intent is lost without the context. I am whatever I think you want me to be and so are you. We are both fake. It
should be called Fakebook. Let me start at the beginning though.
Three years ago I created a Facebook account to remedy the horrible loneliness that plagued my life. What I discovered was something I thought I already knew — that there is no one-size-fits-all solution to anything.
Facebook is the ultimate drug and founder Mark Zuckerberg the ultimate chemist for creating it. Depressed? Bored? Lonely? We have the cure for you, and you don't have to ask your doctor if Facebook is right for you. Facebook is available over the desk. Side effects include insomnia, eye irritation and an inability to connect with people.
Since quitting, I've discovered that the maxim "nothing in life worth doing is easy" is true. To do something that means anything you have to struggle. Likewise, Facebook doesn't mean anything because it requires no struggle. It is fast and convenient, which makes it something that's quintessentially American.
About two weeks ago, a friend noticed I'd left Facebook. She sent me a text message about this and a compliment about a piece I wrote — one long before I even knew what Facebook was. This connection was real because she chose a less convenient way to connect instead of not connecting at all.
Mangiaracina is a Lenexa senior in journalism.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Newspaper overlooked most important story
While I can appreciate the fact that most of the staff wasn't even in high school on Sept.11, 2001, it doesn't excuse the ignorance displayed today. Sept. 11 has forever changed the world we live in, and there wasn't even one mention of it in the entire paper.
Maybe next year we can have a story about what soda flavor is the best on Sept. 11 — that should be an appropriate way to remember the thousands of people who died that day.
I cannot honestly believe that the front page story was about Tropical Sno on the seventh anniversary of Sept. 11. I am very surprised and saddened that flavored ice has the least bit of significance when it comes to this infamous date. Of all the days to run such a story, the Kansan staff chose Sept. 11.
This truly was a despicable choice for news.
— Craig Potthast
Abortion billboards give an inaccurate message
Depicted on the towering billboards in front of Strong last week were images of the end-product of very late term partial-birth abortions. These images suggested that these were the results of all abortions. This was reiterated in a Sept. 10 letter to the editor as the "actual results of abortion."
In actuality, only 1 percent of abortions are performed after 21 weeks, are considered "partial-birth," and (maybe) have the depicted results, according to PBS. This is before the embryo is even considered a fetus.
The decision by these people to push their narrow-minded agenda upon the students of the University and using misrepresentation of the facts and strong images, was indeed destructive:to women's rights, to more than a few students' learning process and to the truth about abortion.
HOW TO SUBMIT A LETTER TO THE EDITOR
- Sara Thompson, senior from Lawrence
Length: 200 words
The submission should include the author's name, grade and hometown.
Send letters to opionion@kansan.com
Write LETTER TO THE EDITOR in the e-mail subject line.
LETTER GUIDELINES
CONTACT US
Length: 200 words
Matt Erickson, editor
684- 810 or merickson@kansan.com
Matt Erickson, editor
Dani Hurst, managing editor 4810 or dhurst@kansan.com
Kelsey Hayes,managing editor 864-4810 or khayes@kansan.com
Lauren Keith, opinion editor 864-4924 or lkeith@kansan.com
Mark Dent, managing editor 864-4810 or mdent@kansan.com
Jordan Herrmann, business manager
864-4358 or jherrmann@kansan.com
Patrick De Oliveira, associate opinion editor
864-4924 or pdeoliveira@kansan.com
Toni Bergquist, sales manager 864-4477 or tbergquist@kansan.com
Malcolm Gibson, general manager and news adviser
Jon Schlitt, sales and marketing adviser
804.7665.2391
MARIAM SAIFAN
THE EDITORIAL BOARD
members of the Kanan Editorial Board are Alex Doherty, Jenny Hartz, Lauren Keith, Patrick de Rainey, Raye Seiberg and Ian Stanford.
864-7667 or mgibson@kansan.com
'West Wing' creator to make Facebook movie
I haven't friended famed screenwriter Aaron Sorkin, so I can only guess what his status is right now. In light of recent events, I would guess it's something like this:
Aaron is writing a movie about
The Face Book! L.O.L. (-).
Yes, there will be a Facebook movie. And yes, 47-year-old Aaron Sorkin is going to write it.
Sorkin, the brains behind TV shows like the very good "Sports Night," the great "West Wing" and the uh ... televised "Studio 60," has been tapped by Sony to write a movie about the social networking behemoth. I had images of a Tron-like special effects bonanza, featuring light cycles zipping through cyberspace, delivering pokes and important event invitations to the masses.
But that's not the case.
Could there be a more varied job description than the one that comes with being Aaron Sorkin's researcher? One moment you're detailing the intricacies of the inner-workings of the White House, and the next we're helping the guy click the "Sign up" link on a Web site. I wonder how well
The film, confirmed by New York magazine last month, will instead tell the story of Harvard dropout Mark Zuckerberg's $16 billion crowning achievement. This recent-historical drama will make the 90s nostalgia flick The Wackiness feel like Ben-Hur.
In the description of his Facebook group "Aaron Sorkin & The Facebook Movie," Sorkin wrote, "I figured a good first step in my preparation would be finding out what Facebook is, so I've started this page." He goes on to make the claim that his grandmother knows more about the Internet than he does, and "she's been dead for 33 years." He said he didn't actually start the group himself. He let his researcher take care of that monumental task.
Perhaps the best part about this story is that Sorkin, by his own attnance, knows absolutely nothing about Facebook.
Nichols is an Overland Park sophomore in creative writing.
But shouldn't we wait to see whether the site fizzes out like
It's not difficult to imagine what the movie might look like. On "Studio 60," where Sorkin couldn't figure out a decent way to make sketch comedy seem as important as the presidency, he decided to have a character's brother kidnapped by extremists in Afghanistan. The Facebook movie would likely have similar leaps in believability.
In that spirit, even though the movie won't be out for a few years, I already look ahead to the inevitable David Mamet YouTube play. Imagine a mascara-clad Al Pacino exclaiming, "Leave Britney alone!"
All Sorkin eccentricities aside, though, it's not unreasonable to question the need or even practicality of a retrospective on a phenomenon we have yet to fully grasp. It seems like every week there's something new questioning Facebook's effects on our daily lives, exploring whether it has dawned a renaissance in communication or destroyed face-to-face social contact forever. The story of Zuckerberg's rise to prominence is an interesting one, after he was accused of stealing much of the site's concept from classmates.
it pays.
You'd pay to see that.
Friendster or becomes as interested to life as the telephone (although my grandfather still insists it's a passing fad) before canonizing it on film?
The fact that there's already a movie being made on the subject does demonstrate one effect Facebook has had on culture: We're more meta than ever before, examining every facet of our lives in detail, reminiscing about last weekend and thinking about how we're going to post photos of next weekend, all the while forgetting to actually live during the week. Our favorite subject is ourselves. The Facebook movie is a celebration of that idea.
Dining Services has taken steps to reduce its waste, and part of this plan was purchasing items like biodegradeable to-go bags and utensils. But landfills are usually compacted too tightly to allow these to biodegrade. Although this is a step in the right direction, Dining Services should focus more on the life cycle of its products and not simply environmental buzz words.
THE CONTEXT
Here's some of the most important information that you may have missed from this week's campus news. Check out kansan.com for full stories and to leave comments.
The amount in tons of cup lids that KU Dining Services estimated were thrown away last year. THE BIG PICTURE
THE BIG PICTURE
THE CONTEXT
The amount in trillions of dollars that the national debt has increased by since 1999. The interest on this debt is $375 billion per year.
THE BIG PICTURE
Rep. Dennis Moore (D-Kan.) spoke at the University about the growing national debt and how the money used to pay the interest could go to something else, such as education. Both presidential candidates include enforcing fiscal discipline on their platforms, but the topic is frighteningly absent from the conversation.
THE CONTEXT
Percent of students at the University who identify themselves as Hispanic, according to the Spring 2008 demographic study.
THE BIG PICTURE
Despite projections that the Hispanic population in the United States will triple by 2050, enrollment of this group at the University has been stagnant. Provost Richard Lariviere created a council to address the problem. The council includes four University students or alumni and hopes to create more material about the University in Spanish.
To contribute to Free for All, visit Kansan.com or call 785-864-0500.
It's so easy to prove somebody else "stupid."
May we remember the valiant sacrifice of our fellow countrymen and the love for one
another.
--any better
To the Tad's ice guy: You just spent $260 on frozen water and sugar. How does that feel? Keep us updated on your diabetes.
Free for All, how come no one ever writes about me? I mean I have a nice smile, an awesome personality and a huge penis. Isn't that enough?
--any better
--any better
I got soul, but I'm not a soldier.
Of course a frat has "Elect Pat Roberts" on its lawn.
All you obnoxious relationship whiners need to take your shit to http://grouphug.us/ and leave the Free for All alone.
--any better
The only reason I get on Facebook anymore is so that I can post on the Free for All.
--believe? Soon?
As much as I hate to admit it, i really wish I could talk to you right now. My father is being an ass again, and talking to someone else isn't the same, but I have a feeling talking to you right now wouldn't be
--believe? Soon?
--believe? Soon?
Stop playing these silly games and kiss me.
Dear Free for All, I really wanted to text you my witty comment so I wouldn't look like an idiot calling you on Jayhawk Boulevard. But alas, you don't believe in texting. Yet. Will you please say you'll be ill? Caes?
---
I really need a good party tomorrow night. This week has been hell.
---
The freshmen are not going to listen to your annoying yet consistent rampages about them riding the Park and Ride bus, so please stop whining and say something clever.
---
I need a really, really, really stiff drink.
---
32 gallons of jungle juice!
---
That definitely meets my crite ria for a stiff drink. Where at?
---
The basement in Budig is for sleeping or quiet studying, not cudding and cutesy talking. Go ahead.
Bicycles do have to follow the same traffic laws as cars.
@KANSAN.COM
Want more? Check out Free for All online.