I think when they’re young many people think they can change the world, but with age comes pessimism or at least a healthy dose of pragmatism. So I’m more than a little hesitant to leap aboard the latest Twitter meme wagon as it hurtles by. The first one was the New Zealand government and its somewhat draconian internet copyright infringement laws which asked protestors to blank their twitter icons in support. The most recent is the Iranian election controversy, where supporters are green shifting their icons. Personally I’ve done neither; I very much doubt such campaigns have any practical effect.
I can only imagine how many petitions with thousands of signatures have been ignored, digital campaigning of this sort just seems even more irrelevant because it’s too easy. If you really want to support a cause send money, or go out in the street with a placard at least that requires some effort on your part.
Supporting the latest Twitter meme just suggests that you’re either a mindless sheep, or so desperate to run with the cool-kids that you’ll sign up for anything. In which case I recommend the Nigerian lottery for you!