Facebook - Privacy Violation?

[UGAalum94]

Originally Posted by nittanyalum

Or, completely disassociate yourself from your GLO in your profile. Life is full of choices.

I see you nailed it perfectly earlier, Nittanyalum. Exactly.

[ΑΓΔSquirrelGirl]

Originally Posted by UGAalum94

This may have been mentioned before, but the other option is to not mention your affiliation with your GLO group on facebook. Personally, I'd still hope that people who keep their postings and photos within the boundaries of good taste, but if you don't really wholeheartedly accept a group's attitude about alcohol, you could limited the issue by not having letters, symbols, greek crests, family trees, etc in your profile.

While I don't think it's a big hardship to not have photos boozing it up online, I also don't think anyone should take the effort to Puritanical extremes. For instance, and this is totally hypothetical since I have no authority in this area, I don't think I'd try to take action against a member who was above the legal drinking age who posted no photos of herself with alcohol connected to her page, but who appeared to be drinking a photo tagged by others. The effort not to connect GLO signs, symbols, or letters with alcohol doesn't extend to requiring that members of legal age not drink in public ever, so I'm not sure why a photo, which wasn't otherwise inappropriate in content, of a person with something that appeared to be alcohol generally being on the internet would be a big problem, tagged on facebook or otherwise.

I suspect that having a outright ban on alcohol images connected with GLOs is just a whole lot easier than making the repeated judgment calls about, well, this photo with a beer bottle is fine but this one isn't because you look drunk, etc.

I doubt anyone would get that upset about a tagged photo...just de tag it, no big deal.

It is definitely easier to just say don't do it then have to figure out what situation is ok. And leaving it open also leaves room to discriminate against one girl versus another.

It IS an option for a woman of legal age to choose between being affiliated online with her letters or posting pictures of booze. What I can't wrap my head around is why anyone would choose the booze.

[UGAalum94]

Originally Posted by ΑΓΔSquirrelGirl

I doubt anyone would get that upset about a tagged photo...just de tag it, no big deal.

It is definitely easier to just say don't do it then have to figure out what situation is ok. And leaving it open also leaves room to discriminate against one girl versus another.

It IS an option for a woman of legal age to choose between being affiliated online with her letters or posting pictures of booze. What I can't wrap my head around is why anyone would choose the booze.

I can't imagine consciously choosing booze, but I can see deciding that I wanted to be free to post pretty close to whatever I wanted rather than having to filter it though someone else's group standards, especially when I was 21 or so.

Even here and now when I'm a lot older and not posting photos, I have enjoyed not having the GLO reference in user name more that I would have guessed when I started.

I didn't get the feeling that Taualumna had the big personal investment in the issue that some people were reading in her posts, but I understand some of what she's feeling in terms of not seeing much fundamentally wrong with alcoholic drinks and therefore finding any strict absolute policy a little rigid. I think it can also be irritating when folks latch onto certain rules about how the group looks while ignoring or promoting images that might be equally distressing to some group members: Barbie chapters, etc, (which I'm not trying to suggest anyone in this thread would do, just that messages about image are trickier than maybe they'd first seem).

ETA: In practice one probably should de-tag a photo like we discussed. In theoretical terms, I don't think she should have to. If it's not illegal or embarrassing and she was drinking in public at the time the photo was taken, it seems a little silly and maybe even hypocritical to worry about de-tagging it. People should think carefully about what they have in their profiles, but in cases where there's nothing wrong with a photo. . .

[SWTXBelle]

I think the reason for the all-out ban on alcohol in pictures is because while you can trust most members to use common sense, the few idiots would spoil it for everyone. So, a lovely shot of a bride and groom toasting each other with champagne would not be a problem for me, but any of the horrible drunken antics shots that we've all seen would be a BIG problem. As usual, the few ruin it for the many.

[ΑΓΔSquirrelGirl]

Originally Posted by UGAalum94

I can't imagine consciously choosing booze, but I can see deciding that I wanted to be free to post pretty close to whatever I wanted rather than having to filter it though someone else's group standards, especially when I was 21 or so.

Even here and now when I'm a lot older and not posting photos, I have enjoyed not having the GLO reference in user name more that I would have guessed when I started.

I didn't get the feeling that Taualumna had the big personal investment in the issue that some people were reading in her posts, but I understand some of what she's feeling in terms of not seeing much fundamentally wrong with alcoholic drinks and therefore finding any strict absolute policy a little rigid. I think it can also be irritating when folks latch onto certain rules about how the group looks while ignoring or promoting images that might be equally distressing to some group members: Barbie chapters, etc, (which I'm not trying to suggest anyone in this thread would do, just that messages about image are trickier than maybe they'd first seem).

ETA: In practice one probably should de-tag a photo like we discussed. In theoretical terms, I don't think she should have to. If it's not illegal or embarrassing and she was drinking in public at the time the photo was taken, it seems a little silly and maybe even hypocritical to worry about de-tagging it. People should think carefully about what they have in their profiles, but in cases where there's nothing wrong with a photo. . .

Rules are there for a reason. And in this case, they are up for change. If your chapter has a rule you don't like, why complain about it instead of change it? My chapter doesn't seem to have a problem with it, fortunately. We all love facebook, but I'm thankful my girls don't take it so seriously that they would take issue with just refraining from posting pictures with alcohol.

I just don't really care. If someone were telling me I couldn't drink, I would raise hell, because that's a right the government actually gives me...it's one of the few you are automatically given. But I wouldn't choose to have alcohol on my profiles either way. If I've got really amazing pictures from a party and there's a beer in my hand I'll leave that for my picture board in my apartment, no big. I'd rather choose that than leave pictures up that might give future employers the wrong impression.

And as I've said, the few ruin it for the whole. It would cause WAY more problems to leave the rule open to interpretation of situations than to just say hey...don't do it.

I guess I'll just never understand what the big deal is. Being part of a group means compromise. It's just not a big thing to ask.

And lastly, I don't think people focus on this "rule". It was made the focus of this thread, but for my chapter at least it's not something we often have a problem with in the first place. With very few exceptions our girls are cooperative and mature enough to just do the small things they are asked to do, like keep their pictures with booze to themselves.

If people in the past hadn't acted ridiculous (not saying they still don't do it, but it came with the times) and Greeks didn't have such a bad name and weren't pelted with negative publicity then alcohol wouldn't be such a big deal. But it is, and it comes with the territory. Oh well.

[brunetteddd]

As far as my sorority is concerned, we are not allowed to drink in our letters, ergo if you have pictures on Facebook of yourself drinking in your letters, you will called into standards. You can also get called in for conduct, but usually it's not because they saw a Facebook picture (unless someone reports an incident and uses the pictures to further prove their point).

However, I've heard of people (mainly those on sports teams) getting in trouble for having pictures of themselves drinking on Facebook. But a good way to prevent that is to un-tag yourself, set lots of privacy limits, etc.

I personally think it's a bit much that someone who is of age to not be allowed to have a picture of themselves with a beer, glass of wine, etc. on their pictures and be part of a sorority/fraternity. Again, you can play the conduct card in those situations, say that there's a picture in which they are clearly in a drunken stupor/acting in bad taste. I feel like in a situation such as that, it's not uncalled for if the person in question is asked to take down the picture/un-tag their self.

[RaggedyAnn]

As far as alumnae are concerned, I can tell you that if alcohol is on our alumnae chapter websites and "Nationals" know about it, someone will address it.

Facebook is harder to police. Alumnae should not change their behavior once they graduate, unless they are raising the bar. You still represent your organization.