Some thoughts about the "no one's forcing you to use it" arguments (of which I'm also partial to, having removed myself from Facebook). Humans do have a need to

Some thoughts about the "no one's forcing you to use it" arguments (of which I'm also partial to, having removed myself from Facebook). Humans do have a need to socialise/connect with other humans, just as we have need food and water - we quickly lose sanity in isolation. To give an example, the worst punishment in prisons is solitary confinement (being separated from the other criminals!). The link between social isolation and health problems and ultimately early death has also been demonstrated. It seems to follow from this then that we do really need Facebook to the degree to which they control all means of socialising, and online communication is only becoming more and more primary over time. In other words, imagining the extreme case where FB is only means to connect with the world (and this is their stated mission), we can no longer choose not to use them anymore than we can choose not to breathe and eat, insofar as physiological well being goes.