Communication lamentations.

Just yesterday, a friend shared a sentiment regarding the use of communication tools such as Twitter that struck a chord with me. He said, "Just because something can be done doesn't mean it's a good idea."

Later that same day...

I was sitting in a movie theater with four girls watching G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra(yes, willingly). When the nano-technology that could conceivably end the world was revealed, my 14-year-old daughter leaned toward me and said, "Why would anyone build something like that?"

I felt a nice little glow of pride when she asked that question. And then I remembered it later when I had to explain to her that, just because someone sends you a bit of information via text message, that does not mean you are required to instantly blurt it out to your neighbor. We have the same type of discussions regarding Facebook. Why is there this need to broadcast our lives to so many people?

[Why do I write in this journal? Good question. When I figure it out, I will let you know.]

I explained that I understood how hard it was to hold onto news, especially since nothing in our society seems to indicate that we should. Fact-checking is now something reserved for days or weeks after a story has broken. But I stressed that, just because you are in possession of a device that allows you to communicate instantly, that doesn't mean you are required to use it.

Just because you can doesn't mean you should. Or, as my friend Stasa and I like to put it, "EVERYBODY SETTLE DOWN."