# [october] Social Media Free Month



## Dikkie (Sep 26, 2016)

too much trolling around by Robbins Trump Photo


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## Scatterbrained (Sep 26, 2016)

I guess I'd have to be on social media to give up social media. . . . .unless you're counting forums.


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## robbins.photo (Sep 26, 2016)

Wow... just a bit judgy, don't you think?  If I use social media I'm automatically an addict?  

Yes, I do post photos to facebook in a facebook group.  No, I don't spend every waking minute on it or any other social media.  I don't have a twitter account, rarely if ever use flickr anymore and even when I did I used it mostly to share photos here, not to converse/interact with other people on Flickr.

So I've got a better challenge for you.  Put your money where your mouth is, and try to get this crusade off the ground without using social media (such as this message forum) to advertise it.  Otherwise it pretty much just drips with hypocrisy, don't you think?


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## table1349 (Sep 26, 2016)

Don't be surprised if you see this October 1st.


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## robbins.photo (Sep 26, 2016)

Dikkie said:


> I never said that everyone using social media are addicts.



Your words:

_So I suppose you don't have the courage to leave it aside for a month?
You're an addict, aren't you?_

So yes, you did say that anyone that didn't join your challenge was an addict.  Which, of course, is crap.



> That's just the point of reaching a wider range of people.



So it's not ok for us to use social media to reach each other because it makes us a bunch of addicts, but perfectly acceptable for you to use social media in an attempt to decry social media, because if you didn't you couldn't reach anyone.

Umm... right.  



> I wasn't planning to go texting my friends about it, or use the regular postal service.



Hypocrisy meter at redline.  Danger Will Robinson, Danger...



> It should've been sent by these Social Media channels. So people could share it.
> But you know what happens on these Social Media, people mostly just swipe further, liking everything without even reading.



But.. um.. for people to share it they'd have to be using social media, which based on your premise is exactly what you don't want... so again... 

Logic fail


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## robbins.photo (Sep 26, 2016)

Dikkie said:


> Don't take it too personal or sarcastic, *robbins.photo.*


*http://www.thephotoforum.com/members/robbins-photo.156714/*

Well when people who don't know me from Adam start accusing me of being an addict, how should I take that?



> *It's just a challenge*. Participate or not, that's up to you.
> I just wanted to inform people, and specifically via the channels social media users are using.
> I'm not going to a soccer club to ask people to take a break with basketball...



Then maybe stop calling people addicts, and stop with the list of excuses you think they'll give, and in general stop with the attempts at shaming - particularly since the only vehicle you have for doing this is social media to begin with.  Massive amounts of hypocrisy there.



> It's not a discussion. It's just a simple question of 'can you live without twitter/FB/Insta... just for a month'?
> I already understood that you're not going to join.



Of course they can.  Most of my generation lived without social media and indeed even the internet for decades.  The first personal computer I ever had ran off a basic operating system, had 16k of internal memory and all programs had to be loaded from a tape drive.  It was considered state of the art at the time.  

So no, don't really need you or anyone to preach to me about proper internet/social media usage, thanks.  I've got it covered.  Maybe you should spend all the time your wasting on this on something else.  Again, put your money where your mouth is.  Go volunteer at a homeless shelter, or habitat for humanity, etc.

And before you ask, yes, I do both on a fairly regular basis.


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## pixmedic (Sep 26, 2016)

Someone picked the wrong month for the "social media challenge".
October is Breast Cancer awareness month.
a lot of people and organizations use social media before and during October to promote various
projects for awareness, charity work, and donations.

picking October to ask people to drop off the social media network is even more unrealistic a request than it would be during a normal month.


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## robbins.photo (Sep 26, 2016)

Dikkie said:


> FAIR ENOUGH, YOU'RE NOT AN ADDICT.




Gosh thanks.  Because my life simply wasn't complete until you validated it.  



> Now, you should stop taking things personally... it was a message to everyone.



Oh, so your defense for the original post then could be summed up as, "I wasn't insulting you personally, I was actually trying to be insulting to everyone?"

Umm... hmmm...



> And if you're not an addict, what's the problem then? Why don't you participate, it will be easy for you.
> Prove it.




I have nothing to prove to you.  At all.  I got a better idea, since this social media ban was your idea, why don't you prove it.  By not using social media.. such as say, this message forum.  Lets face it, so far you've shown your pretty good at preaching to others but not so good at following your own advice.  So by all means, show us all that your not just being a hypocrite and stop using social media yourself.


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## pixmedic (Sep 26, 2016)

Dikkie said:


> robbins.photo said:
> 
> 
> > Well when people who don't know me from Adam start accusing me of being an addict, how should I take that?
> ...




only 10 posts a day?

I spent 15 minutes on another forum earlier and got 6 posts...
hardly a monumental number.


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## robbins.photo (Sep 26, 2016)

Dikkie said:


> You're almost at 10 posts a day on this forum as average... only on this forum. Wondering what it is on other media.
> I didn't invent this statistic.



And your point being?  See, the only person I'd ever allow to lecture me about such a thing passed away years ago.  Since your not my dad, it is, well frankly none of your damn business.  Thought we'd established that already.  I don't need you to tell me how to live my life.  Go have kids of your own, and parent them.  I did, and they turned out fine.



> I grew up in that era too... I still know the time without computers, don't have to explain the history to me.



Apparently I do, because obviously you seem to think it's impossible for folks to live without the internet or social media.  If you didn't believe that your challenge wouldn't have any merit, now would it?



> It's not about proper social media usage.
> It's just about the question: can you disconnect for a month or not.



Of course I could.  Easily.  Do I need to?  Nope.  Can you?  Obviously not.  You keep responding here.  So.. hypocrisy abounds.  A point you keep trying to obfuscate.

Now, feel free to unplug before you exceed whatever post limit it is you think is appropriate for social media use.  Or, to be a bit more biblical about it, take the plank out of your own eye before you start whining about the sliver in mine.


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## robbins.photo (Sep 26, 2016)

pixmedic said:


> only 10 posts a day?



Ya, I'm a slacker.


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## robbins.photo (Sep 26, 2016)

Dikkie said:


> Than what are you still doing here in this topic?



Using my social media, which I enjoy.  See, there's no hypocrisy on my part, because I'm not the one pretending I have any right to lecture anyone else about there social media use, while abusing social media myself.  Would a chart help?



> I'm about to prove it, but as you probably didn't read the timing: 1st october > 31st october... It starts in couple of days...
> Can't beam me up to the future around 31st october to prove it...
> 
> And what a _better _idea? I'm the one starting it and will participate of course, what a retorical question...



It's rhetorical.. btw.  As far as starting anything, I think all you've really started here is a tiresome excuse to make yourself feel superior to others by judging them.  I'm merely suggesting you follow your own advice, get off the social media wagon and stop posting now.  Why wait?  I mean you don't really need to respond, do you?  Your not an addict, are you?


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## pixmedic (Sep 26, 2016)

I totally would participate in this, but....
to many (insert politically correct reference to women's mammary glands here) to post in October....for breast cancer awareness, of course.


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## pixmedic (Sep 26, 2016)

Dikkie...
you DO realize that  you have made 10 posts in this thread alone...
with such prolific social media habits, however will you make it through October without posting?


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## table1349 (Sep 26, 2016)

robbins.photo said:


> Dikkie said:
> 
> 
> > FAIR ENOUGH, YOU'RE NOT AN ADDICT.
> ...


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## Scatterbrained (Sep 26, 2016)

Dikkie said:


> Scatterbrained said:
> 
> 
> > I guess I'd have to be on social media to give up social media. . . . .unless you're counting forums.
> ...


True, although the amount of time I spend on all of those sites combines pales in comparison with the amount of time I spend simply reading the news in the morning.


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## robbins.photo (Sep 27, 2016)

Dikkie said:


> Can I? Yes, just answered the question above.
> Can  you? you say yes, but you don't want to prove it, so theres no reason to believe you.
> Participate and after a month we'll talk again.



Is it any of your business what I do with my time?  Nope.  Do I need to prove to you I can stop using social media?  Nope, because, again, it's none of your damn business as we've previously established on multiple occasions.

See, your not my dad.  So you have no say in the matter whatsoever.  Truthfully even when my Dad was still alive, he'd have no say in the matter since I'm well over the age of 18, pay my own bills and didn't require his permission for such things.  However if he felt the need to say something, I would have listened because I always respected his opinion.

Your opinion is frankly completely meaningless to me.  So again, if this is your desperate to parent someone, go have kids of your own.  Big Hint, that will actually require you to spend less time on social media harassing other people about there social media usage.


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## Gary A. (Sep 27, 2016)

I'm all for a Free month of social media. (If the month is Free who picks up the tab for my cell phone and Internet connection?)


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## mckownphotography (Sep 27, 2016)

I don't understand the purpose of the challenge. This is like saying ... Stop using your phone for a month .. restrict all communication to only those lucky enough to catch you in person somewhere .. go live in the 80s LOL

Why not come up with a challenge that actually benefits people in some way .... Stop eating McDonalds for a month ... Stop throwing trash out of your car window .. stop smoking .. or a million other bad things people do every single day


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## robbins.photo (Sep 27, 2016)

mckownphotography said:


> I don't understand the purpose of the challenge. This is like saying ... Stop using your phone for a month .. restrict all communication to only those lucky enough to catch you in person somewhere .. go live in the 80s LOL



Ok, see now that actually makes some sense.  I looked good in big hair.  Lol


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## JacaRanda (Sep 27, 2016)

I hope not many try this.  What I read on social media scares me.  Seriously hoping most of those people are inside and stay occupied with social media.


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## limr (Sep 27, 2016)

Sure, there can be negative effects of spending too much time on social media, but who defines "too much"? This kind of month-long fast suggests that ANY use of social media is causing negative effects to ALL who use it, so we all should eliminate it to go do "real" things. This ignores the fact that for some, connecting to people socially through the Internet is just as real as anything in their non-virtual worlds, and that this isn't automatically a bad thing. People suffering from physical disabilities, illness, crippling social anxiety, agoraphobia...or even people whose business depend on social media...are they also "addicts" who need to break their bad social media habits?

It can be a welcome, healthy break to unplug from devices, from social media, from technology once in a while, because yes, we can become a bit lost in them at times. Too much of a good thing can be a bad thing. But a much more realistic break is a day or two. The people who would even consider avoiding social media for an entire month are the ones who don't need to in the first place.


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## table1349 (Sep 27, 2016)




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## ClickAddict (Sep 28, 2016)

Considering many people use social media as a marketing tool for their business,  (Myself included:  90-95% of my business comes from word of mouth via FB) quitting it for a month and ignoring my clients messages makes perfect sense.  Where do I sign up???   www.businesssuicide.com?


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## smoke665 (Sep 28, 2016)

The only problem I have with FB and other social media is the tendency for people to say things online that they wouldn't say in a face to face conversation. Also without benefit of facial expressions things said in jest are easily misconstrued. I do enjoy the contact/pictures with friends and family that I would otherwise miss due to distance or time.

Though I occasionally use texting, I still despise it. I've never understood why anyone would want to spend 30 mins texting back and forth when a 3 min phone call would handle it.


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## limr (Sep 28, 2016)

Dikkie said:


> Well I first thought to start a campaign like 'social media free DAY', but I was already clearly seeing the reactions of how ridiculous it would be to stop for only one day. There's no challenge on it. If that would already be a challenge, it says a lot about 'social media' and 'addiction'.
> *To go offline for only one day, you can't clear your head with that.*
> If smokers would stop for only one day, it won't change anything, they won't feel a cold turkey for example...



Maybe _you _can't, but perhaps others can. Saying that it's "ridiculous" to stop for "only one day" is arrogant. How could you possibly know what it might take for a person _who is not you_ to stop using social media for a day? How could you know how it might affect a person _who is not you_? And once again with the smoking metaphor, you are assuming that everyone who uses social media is addicted to it instead of just using it for a purpose and then going on with their lives. Some of us understand moderation.

Look, obviously people have issues with this, not because they think it's a terrible idea to take a break from social media, but because the suggestion is unrealistic and it was presented judgmentally. If you want to take a month-long break, then good for you. If you can actually do it, even better. But the underlying assumption in your invitation to join you is that if you need that much time, so does everyone else, and if they say otherwise, they are just too addicted to admit it. The reality is that people are different, and you shouldn't assume that you know our needs and our minds better than we do.


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## limr (Sep 28, 2016)

smoke665 said:


> Though I occasionally use texting, I still despise it. I've never understood why anyone would want to spend 30 mins texting back and forth when a 3 min phone call would handle it.



I agree with you in this situation. Sometimes my boyfriend and I will send a text or two, realize that we have more to say than we can bother with through texts, and then just call each other. On the other hand, with some of my friends, I'm more likely to be dealing with the opposite situation. In those cases, something that could be handled with a few quick texts can easily turn into 20-30 minutes of useless small talk that I really can't be bothered with. Plus, I hate talking on the phone.


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## robbins.photo (Sep 28, 2016)

Dikkie said:


> No **** Sherlock... I already knew I'm not your dad...



Then why the continued insistence in pretending that you are, or that you have any say in my or anyone elses life and how they live it?



> You already said it's none of my business in the quote above...
> If you don't feel addressed, don't get involved in this discussion and do something more meaninful for yourself.
> But then again, I'm not your dad telling this to you...



But I am doing something meaningful.  I'm participating in social media, which is meaningful for me.



> Truthfully even *when my Dad was still alive, ....*
> 
> time to get over it...



Get over what?  The loss of one of the best men I ever knew?  Wow.  So your not only judgemental and pushy, your also quite callous.  Ok, good to know then.



> I know, only your dad may talk to you... So, no one will ever have to talk to you, because it can be meaningless to you... unless your...



Wow... I think I'm starting to understand why you hate social media so much.  Your reading comprehension skills apparently leave a lot to be desired.



> So if they search excuses for not to join, it's a sign of addiction.



So anyone that doesn't participate is automatically branded an addict.  For those of you keeping score this means we've now come full circle and are back to full blown judgy mode.

Best part, you keep engaging all of us on... duh duh duh.. .social media to champion your cause.  But of course your not an addict because somehow you magically fall below addict level on your number of posts per day/week/month/year which of course is a number determined solely by... you.

Funny how that works...


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## table1349 (Sep 28, 2016)




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## Dikkie (Dec 12, 2016)

For in case you wanted to know, I succeeded the challenge. 

Anyway... an interesting video on that topic:





Specially from the 13th minute. 
And aswel the part at the 7th minute about addictions.


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