Maine State Grange

Words from Walter…

 A little Dr. Seuss wisdom seems appropriate on several counts… for one, “bookworming” at school is over until fall and I shall miss the joys of simplistic wisdom and problem solving the children offer… as well as their giggles and joys. For another, this year the kids aren’t the only ones getting a vacation–so is your webmaster! And there’s nothing like a vacation to create perspective!

Of course planning a vacation is not without its challenges and troubles–and one of those challenges is how to manage responsibilities that truly can’t just be put “on hold.”

As regular visitors of the site know, I do my best to post news and events in a timely fashion—usually within a day or two of receipt. Thanks to the use of a laptop, I will be able to continue to service the site but I’m asking for some help. If you have information and events coming up, send them to me as soon as practical—the more I can get done before vacation, the better! Also, I’m asking for some patience and understanding if “customer service” seems to diminish from late June through mid-July. (Since this is our first official vacation in over ten years, we’re making it a long one!)

Speaking of troubles, there are plenty to go around– including what finds you on the Internet. Several things might be worth calling to your attention.

Facebook users may have noticed a recent flurry of activity suggesting users post a personal privacy policy prohibiting the use of personal information. Sorry, that won’t work. The minute you signed up as a Facebook user and every time you use it you are agreeing to their terms. I can assure you that their terms are to their advantage and not to yours. Facebook mines data—it’s their product and their reason for being. They are very good at what they do. I’ll bet, for example, you didn’t know that if Facebook was a country it would be the third largest country in the world based on population. So when you post on Facebook you are potentially “sharing” information with a lot of people.

I recently saw a proud parent post her children’s photographs, report cards (which included their home address), list of awards, etc. on Facebook. That should be frightening. What benefit outweighs the risk?

On the more amusing side, I chuckle when someone tells me how busy they’ve been and how sorry they are they didn’t get something done I needed. Do they not realize a check on Facebook reveals this overworked person was playing one of the many Facebook games for several hours just before apologizing for unfinished work?

For the record, I am not campaigning against Facebook. I am campaigning in favor of critical thinking and discretion. A little fear is not such a bad thing, either.

One thing to be fearful of is some of the email you’re probably getting that looks very official and asks you to change your password, check your order status, etc. Many of these use logos of familiar companies (including Facebook) but are really just trickery to get you to click links, visit sites, and provide information.

Come to think of it, one word that we hear during the closing of our meetings might fit well with our activities online. “Let us be mindful of…”