Is social media really anti social?

Are we becoming social inept with the increased usage of social networking sites?

I have to confess that i am a newshound and my home page is a awash with feeds from Reuters, BBC and other worthy news sites.  These sites provide up to the minute accurate news that satisfies my requirements, coupled with the other facet that many people have of the further quest for knowledge which is the hours spent on Wikipedia channel hopping links to more interesting areas and opening tabs for "things for later".  Social networking for me is another channel for up to the minute news, recently i noticed that the trend was Roy Hodgson only to realise that the announcement for Liverpools new manager was tweeted before the new sites had gotten it.  Is Twitter a news channel for normal people or is it a gossip column?

My thoughts are this we use social networking to contact and keep in touch with friends and family rather than picking up the phone or visiting.  Without it would really actually truly keep in contact with people, I wouldnt have the time to visit, but I am never far from an appliance to communicate. Hell I even had about 100 people wish me happy birthday, I didnt know that many people liked me!  so I believe we are a little less social with these sites but far more connected than we would ever be able to.  Good and Bad....... Good for me. 

Twitter: _jasonwilliams

What is it to be Cornish?

Cries of Cornwall for the Cornish ring out throughout Cornwall. Well in some areas anyway. I am Cornish, my ancestors are Cornish and I am proud to have some heritage to a County that is what I consider one of the best places in the world. We have a coastline that is both beautiful and impressive, which provides much of the reason why it attracts what is our only industry, tourism. Whilst the summer months are short lived these days, the time is maximised into 6 weeks of what can be considered troublesome for some areas. This is based on both a lack of understanding for tourists that cornwall has a different way of doing things than most, we dont deal well with traffic jams and equally drivers that fear going abov 20 miles an hour on a country lane may make them go back in time. That being said Cornwall relies on tourists to sustain many of its businesses in the summer, without them we are an even poorer county, the poorest already. So when I hear the cries of Cornwall for the Cornish it bothers me and makes me sad that we have grown so arrogant that whilst we complain about low wages and lack of opportunity we need someone to blame for this, the people that have moved to the area because they too love the area often become objects of distain. Granted in all walks of life there are people who dropped in a desert island could fall out with the only coconut on the island. Should the selfishness of the few be for the many? well not for me but in Cornwall where the celtic pride takes on many shapes and forms, it does. So my point is that if Cornwall should be for the Cornish then shouldnt we be creating industry that doesnt rely on tourism, when Cornish people invest in this trade does that not also create a loop that without investing in a sustainable alternative then we will never break the cycle? what concerns me is the lack of opportunity that our children will have in the future. We have some really very clever people and some very successful business in the County, why cant we find something that can make Cornwall something unique, hell everyone is a photographer, designer or artist. Is there an opportunity there? with the recession and government looking to make cuts then there is an opportunity to make this happen. I am not clever enough to know what but what we have to do is stop the absurd cries of "we are so hard done by" and come together and use what we have to build a future for Cornwall all of our children. Well I would like to think we can, rather than just talk about it.

Big society

Well i have partaken in the creation of a social media group on facebook which is designed to encorouge community spirit! its a group design for the homes on the estate that i live to see what the interest is for people coming together in a community. The ethos that we are seeing at the moment is central government want us to have a society where we take control and service our own environment. Is this possible and not just a utopian dream? we will see. I am interested to see if normal people really have the interest or passion to help themselves.
Having met Mr Cameroon at Constaintine in 2009 i have to say he seemed like a normal chap, his dismissive attitude to a lady who greeted him like an old friend in her prada water proofs in full make up did give me some distinct satifaction as i was stood in a pair of boardies in what can only described as a cloud burst, i was sheltering my children, his friends and his own kid in a flimsy summer tent. They were a little damp but he thanked me and made his way up the beach. Interesting not but hopefully it was an example of the community spirit that he is looking for. Me, I was selfishly waiting for the tide to turn so I could go for a surf and didnt have a clue who he was at the time.

Anyway, big society, is it a pipe dream, an experiment in real social networking or a get out of delivering services to local people. Who knows but time will tell.