A FB status update is the social equivalent of meeting somebody in the hallway on your way into work. It's cordial, upbeat, shallow, and meant to convey friendl

A FB status update is the social equivalent of meeting somebody in the hallway on your way into work. It's cordial, upbeat, shallow, and meant to convey friendliness. It is not an indication of your mental state or a diary. Yes, I understand that I'm applying my own rules, and folks are free to use it for about anything. I'm trying to share the social way the site works. As such, it actually has a function that many of both its supporters and detractors miss: it's a quick mental health check first thing in the morning. Are you able to interact in a positive way to people smiling? Do you have something light and funny to share? Can you just not be an asshole? If so, you might have a chance at being a decent human being today. If not -- might want to meditate, drink an extra cup of coffee, or whatnot. What I'm seeing, especially with your item d, is people using Facebook to virtue signal and try to express themselves in writing -- people who may have never been used to doing this in their life. So it's rough going for them. With a, b, and c, it can either be a sign of insecurity and competition or simply a way to share something innocuous and inoffensive. It depends on the pattern. One thing I've noticed -- there are a lot of really nice, quiet people in life that have a pretty freaking nasty internal dialogue going on. Getting that out in the open is probably good for them. Sucks to be reading it, though.