Kip Austin Hinton

[excerpt from email to my sister] about the idea of friend, this kind of forum makes a re-definition of it. reminds me a bit of summer camp, when yo become a "friend" of someone, spend practically every waking hour together, then never see each other again after camp is over. of course that doesn't happen with everyone, and there are exceptions, but many people go through such relationships. and yes, there are people on here who (the page announces) have "200 friends!" and according to the definition used on MySpace, sure, any of these people are my "friends". but in reality, we are not enemies, but we don't hang out together. to me, a friend is... if i would give her/him a ride to the airport on my lunch break, she/he is a friend. so my point is, i remember ty's friend jason. but i'm not giving him a ride to the airport. -------------------------------------- after reflecting, i actually decided i probably would give ty's friend a ride...

[myspace] so this seems like a cheapening of the word "friend." unlike in reality, to be a "friend" on this website requires disturbingly little commitment. or recognition. just click here and -- boom, you've made a new "friend." someone i've never seen, spoken to. like walking up to a stranger and starting an intimate conversation, calling her/him a friend. to do that in reality, well, you'd count as the freak on the bus, right? the one nobody sits next to. but do it on MySpace? you're "popular." like magic, like Brak (on Space Ghost Coast to Coast, circa 1995) telling everyone about his "imaginary girlfriend."