Talk Is Cheap...

Share I believe that the internet has made it much easier for us to stay in touch with one-another. Not only is the cost of staying in contact reduced, but the amount of time spent is also considerably less. With social networking sites such as Facebook, we can easily stay up to date with what is going on in our friends' lives.

Susy Q, a long time friend that just moved to Europe posts a status on Facebook saying, "I'm pregnant!" Instead of calling everybody in her phone book to inform them of this great news, she takes 30 seconds of her life to inform the majority of her friends and family. This avoids the cost of international phone calls, and also makes up for the time difference, as you can read it whenever. If you are, in fact, so excited that you want to call her and talk about it, there is nothing stopping you!

While there are obvious benefits such as this, there are also some other disadvantages. With the majority of interactions being text based, many people are losing the "gift of gab." People are less able to talk with eachother when sitting face to face, but not by much. Children still go to school, people still go to work, and people still talk on the phone. That is something that will probably not change in our lifetimes.