Fuck it. I'm out. I'm not just deactivating my Facebook profile... I'm
leaving. For good.

I really, really don't like where Facebook is going, nor how they are
getting there. I know they gotta make money, but at least pretend a
little bit to give a shit about your customers.

The comparison to Google is waaay off base in my opinion. I give
Google everything... my personal emails, my calendar and tasks, the
documents on my computer (!)... way more than I give Facebook, but
Google doesn't explicitly share any of it with advertisers; Google
takes care of the ads themselves. That was smart for a lot of reasons,
but Google is one of the most trusted brands *in the world* (and they
didn't even exist 13 years ago!) specifically because of the *way*
they use your data.

Every time it's the same. Facebook makes a big change, people
(rightfully) cry foul, they kind of rescind some of it, and then when
you forget about it, they bring it back with a new name and a couple
of small privacy concessions. And every time - there's never any
warning - by default you've just opted in to their whims. Even when
you "opt out" of a setting, it doesn't mean "only your friends can see
something and no one else"; it means no one just browsing on the site
can see it... but advertisers don't browse on the site, of course, and
now your personal information and your friends' personal information
becomes theirs, too.

Everything you post, like, friend, look at, or even hover your mouse
over (!) is captured and saved forever. And becomes fair game for any
changes that Facebook may or may not implement in the future.

I'm just cutting my losses now. Like I mused the other day - a little
hyperbolic, yes I know - but this feeling has only gotten stronger:
you know how the Jews who left Europe in the 30's were later called
"the smart ones?" I feel like it's only a short matter of time before
someone I know gets just totally fucked because of Facebook. I don't
care if you hate Jesus, or drink too much, or dress up in little
girls' clothing, or all of those things... but your employer might.
Your landlord might. Your neighbor might. You never know. And
something you thought was just between you and your friends
accidentally finds its way into someone else's hands. Oops. Bad PR for
Facebook. Life-altering for you.

This is rambling and a little all over the place, but wasn't intended
to be a manifesto. I'm not going to crash my Mazda into Facebook's
office. But I'm not staying to watch either.

Any time you want to know what I had for lunch, I'll tell you.
As long as it's just between you and me, ok?