When It Rains, It Pours.

So if you think you had it bad, you might have spoken too soon.

Much of the world today hits social media platforms to complain, gripe, whine and pretty much dole out as much moaning as one can muster. The reasons for doing so (which they believe internally drives them) range from:

1. Wanting to 'Share'

2. Educate the Uninformed

3. 'Make a Difference'

4. Commiserate

5. Simply to Connect

Of course, the list is not exhaustive. This is also not to undermine those who do it for 'valid' reasons (whatever helps you sleep at night). This is an observation of the habits that social media has allowed to emerge, thrive and yes… overrun lives.

These reasons, although seemingly innocuous, have layers that can be uncovered to reveal, sometimes sinister, or at least deep-seated underlying intentions. For example:

1. Wanting to Share, can reveal underlying intentions of broadcasting that "I am the first one on the pulse of things." Which could inadvertently reveal that competitive streak.

2. Educate the Uninformed, can reveal a person who has an inferiority complex, hence needing to create a persona that is superior to the rest. 

3. Make A Difference, can reveal a person who feels insignificant, but with one simple act of clicking on a keyboard, feel better about themselves for having done 'something' as opposed to nothing. (debate on the subject of 'something' is left for a discussion on another day)

4. Commiserate, many a times are performed by pretentious people who offer sweet nothings, but will likely not show up come crunch time.

5. Simply to Connect, shows how lonely this brave new world has become. And the sheer number of people hooked and addicted to these new technologies are undeniably testaments.

The world we know today is virtually (pun intended) unrecognisable from what it looked like less than 20 years ago. There is of course much talk about how disconnected the world has become, despite being the most 'connected' ever in history. These days, airing dirty laundry in public is no longer disdainful. At times, it is even lauded. Gone are the days when there were filters and policing of information sharing to ensure veracity and quality. This means people need to be more savvy in determining what is news and what is trash. Unfortunately, if the way things are going are anything to go by, brain capacity appears to be shrinking as rapidly as the resources left on earth. 

The picture I paint reflects the surroundings and environment within which I live. It is bleak and it is ugly. If it looks bad, I remind myself that it has the infinite potential to become worse. Because when it starts to rain, I am no longer surprised when the heavens open and it pours.