I don’t know about you, but creating an online account on a site which empowers others to trash me, degrade me, and make me look like a complete idiot has never been my idea of fun. Shockingly, many teenagers around the world seem to disagree.

Formspring.com should more accurately be named pleasemakefunofme.com. The fact that people allow others to post anonymous questions and comments on a page which ultimately creates a portrayal (whether true or false) of one’s character and image seriously unsettles me.

My generation’s obsession with these kinds of sites centered around gossip and ridicule altogether embarrasses me. Why engage in something so pointless and so obviously harmful? Yes, other sites like Facebook may at times provoke these same types of actions as well, but at least they can provide some legitimate benefits like keeping in touch with friends and family and promoting different causes and businesses.

With many teens on Facebook kindly providing links directly to their Formspring account, people are just asking to be dissed, dumped, and mentally destroyed. Having said this, I am not trying to justify those making the completely disrespectful comments. You cannot excuse the bullying and dehumanizing of others, and those who take part in it are clearly doing more wrong than their undeserving victims. However, do yourself a favor and don’t make an account in the first place.

Formspring has proved itself a ridiculous concept. The fact that the world spends hours at a time to “ask, answer, and learn about [their] friends” should provoke concern about the values and morals of our society. Instead of perusing content on an artificial website to learn about your friends, meet up in person and go ask them yourself.

After receiving numerous degrading and inappropriate questions, I would think that people would have realized that this site was not worth their time. Being told that you have no friends and should really get a life does not respect the dignity of anyone and insults your character. However, if you choose to make yourself a victim of these tactless bullies, please don’t complain.