During the last few elections, candidates have made it more of a priority to appeal to younger generations.
In turn, the college-age voters turned out in higher numbers for the 2004 elections.
Finally, with the help of Facebook.com, politicians now have the opportunity to become personal with their young constituents: They can poke them.
According to its website, Facebook now has over 1,600 House, Senate, and governorship candidates with profiles on the networking site. Applause must be given to the person who brainstormed this idea.
Unfortunately, I doubt we will see a shirtless picture of Joe Lieberman holding a Natural Ice in his profile.
More than 9 million people and over 40,000 social networks are registered in Facebook. CNET.com ranks it as the number 1 website for students, and comScore has it as the seventh-most trafficked site on the web.
I hope I wasn't the only person shaking my head at those statistics.
In all 5 of my classes, I estimate that at least 25 percent of the students in each class bring their laptop. Approximately all of them are Facebooking. Lucky for us here at Ball State University, being the nation's number 1 wireless university sure does come in handy when you got a craving to join a new group.
I assume that if the professors around campus knew that while they're lecturing, the students who appear to be diligently taking notes on their laptops were actually filling their best friend's wall with mindless banter about last weekend's big kegger, there might be a crackdown on Facebook in class.
Those who spend 75 minutes every class chatting on AIM or comparing friend totals on Facebook with the person next to them fail to realize that it is distracting to just about everyone behind them.
The entire Facebook idea simply raises some questions that I have trouble answering.
I understand that I am in the minority, and most of my fellow students can't get enough Facebook. Looking at picture after picture of myself and those I associate with really doesn't appeal to me.
My biggest question is about the amount of personal information people list on their profiles for thousands of people to see.
Before my profile was shut down for having a fake name and being offensive to those in fraternities, I was shocked at how many people list their address, phone number, class schedule, and often times more personal things in their profile.
I am aware that there are some minor security measures that can be taken, but most people seem to have no problem telling the creepy guy that sits next to them in Psychology where they live.
One of my other issues with Facebook is the fact that most of the people on it have absolutely no shame in the pictures they post. Is it an attention issue? Are you really sure you want your professor to see the picture of you vomiting all over your passed out friend?
Poking also needs to be discussed. What does it accomplish? Is there an absolute need to gain someone's attention on Facebook before class is over? Or is it a method for breaking the ice with a stranger? I can't imagine people approaching a stranger in public and simply poking them to initiate a conversation.
While I do see some benefits of Facebook, such as being able to keep up with your high school friends to see who gained how much weight, the point must be made clear: Facebook does not belong in the classroom. Save your poking, adding, joining, and wall-writing for your dorm room.
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