Ask.fm

In our current generation, and probably generations before, people find that it is easier to say things when not face to face. For example, the majority of people would agree that they find it easier to ask or tell a person something through social media or texting. They only thing is, the person you ask can find out who you are and the after effects can still be awkward. What could possibly eliminate this possible embarrassment?

 

You guessed it, make the questions anonymous. Ask.fm does exactly that. You can simply “ask” someone a question, get an answer, and no one would ever know that you asked it. For some people who ask regular questions this might be a positive thing. However, there is a dark side as well.

 

Bullying and sexual harassment. Yes, these things really do happen. Over a certain period of time someone thought it would be okay to ask a “dirty” or inappropriate question since after all, it is anonymous. While it is your decision to answer the questions you are “asked”, there really isn’t much of a way to avoid a plain old comment. As if face to face and bullying isn’t hard enough to deal with and eliminate, the genius creator of ask.fm has enabled yet another way to cyber bully.

 

It is already suggested that 3.2 million children are bullied each year. With an anonymous questioner, it is nearly impossible to put a stop to that specific bully, let alone try and cut down on our bullying rates.

 

Schools say that they are a “no bully zone”. But what does that really mean? Have a talk with the bully? Switch a few classes? While that is fine and dandy, it doesn’t completely eliminate the bully. Nor does it affect the way they will act at home. Yes, it is appreciated that schools insist that they won’t put up with it, but there are still a lot of loop holes.

 

I did not mean to turn this topic into bullying, however ask.fm does enable it. While there are some major negatives, there are some positives as well. When you can ask something without any worries or regret you may boost your self-confidence and maybe even the person you are questioning. It is another way to connect to people. You get a rush from the excitement that comes with finding out that someone may think you are cute or funny.

 

Long story short, ask.fm is an option. Use it or not, just be aware of what CAN come with it. It may not be what you expected.

 

-Hangin’ from a clothesline