Social media makes family members less social
I feel like all this social media is actually making people less social, and it makes me sad.
Do people (like me) who don't want every move to be public, have any rights?
-- Upset
Dear Upset: It seems that while younger people have a reputation for oversharing, older people are actually worse about protecting and respecting privacy -- both their own, and other peoples'.
This creates not only social, but security concerns.
Yes, you have a right to privacy. No, you will not receive it, certainly not while Granny's got a Facebook account. And if you are in a public place or at a public event (a restaurant or a party), you don't really have the expectation of privacy in a legal sense.
Someone should explain to your mother-in-law that telegraphing where you are going and revealing where you are -- in real time -- creates very real security concerns. By posting constant updates about her whereabouts, she has just saved a burglar the trouble of casing her house (and/or yours) before he robs it.
You should stick up for yourself and for your right not to be photographed without your consent. You should state, out loud, that your life is most definitely not an open book.
You may be branded a party pooper, but I know many people who would gladly sit at your table -- where there is at least a shot at having a privately enjoyed conversation.
Dear Amy: My husband -- my best friend of 30 years -- has terminal cancer.
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