"Social" Media

I've been increasingly disturbed by interactions between people that I've seen on Facebook and Twitter. People are just hateful, mean and crazy. Before the advent of social media people had to be in person or on the phone to express themselves. This required a certain level of civility. But when people hide behind a computer screen or the screen in their hand they feel they are insulated somehow from the ramifications of the crazy that pours out of their heads and out through the tips of their fingers. 

But with the recent revelations about the mishandling of the data of millions of users I feel the earth shaking under my feet, so to speak.

Indeed, I have two different app nests on my devices for social platforms:

* Social 
*Anti-social 

The first holds shortcuts to things like my blogs, Diaspora*, Mastadon, and other places I feel safe in sharing to others.

The Anti-social folder holds places like Twitter and Facebook. 

But with the revelation that Facebook is also tracking my phone calls, I'm beginning to feel it is time to jump ship. Keeping close to my family and close friends, which is the ONLY reason I'm still on Facebook, is just not that important. Maybe in time they'll come to the same conclusions and follow me to a federated sharing platform. But until that happens I guess we'll just have to keep up with each other the old fashioned way: in person or on the phone (preferably on phones without FaceSnatcher or the like installed).

I guess my primary point is that when people I'm connected to behave badly I can shake my head and I have a few tools I can use to work around them. But when corporations and fascist states behave poorly and misuse my trust and information I am left with few options. So, I guess it's getting close to time to chop off the head of the snake.

Doc Shopping

I am annoyed by the derogatory use of the term "doc shopping". It implies the act of going from doctor to doctor looking for one who will give one the drugs they want. Oftentimes, however, after encountering 10's of doctor's who are unwilling or unable to actually treat one with multiple complex health issues there is a paper trail which gives the illusion of so called "doc shopping". 

When shopping for an appliance you go from store to store until you find the appliance that satisfies all your needs for that appliance. Why can't it be the same with doctors? They are, like all people, imperfect and not right for everyone. And they, too,  have likes, dislikes, and prejudices like everyone else,  right or wrong.

So, it falls to the patient to be FORCED to "shop" until they find a provider who can and will treat them adequately and fairly.

In today's United States this is a tall order. And a hard one to fill.