Watch Your Mouth!

President Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, Dr. Henry Louis Gates Jr. and Sergeant James Crowley got drunk last Thursday night during their "Beer Summit" and danced the night away to Vice President Biden's raunchy karaoke rendition of "Baby Got Back." After forgetting to reflect on the state of race relations in America, an intoxicated Sergeant Crowley later arrested both President Obama and Dr. Gates for disorderly conduct. Can you say, "Here we go again?"

(DISCLAIMER: The statement above is completely false and is not intended to defame the character of any aforementioned parties or groups).

Obviously, I was joking. I had to add that disclaimer, just in case. It's easy to get carried away when participating in social media, isn't it? Many social networking sites, especially Twitter, allow us to feel creative, expressive and free to say whatever we want. It's easy to think, "who's really paying attention to my rambling?" Well, somebody is, and that somebody may consider your free-tweeting to be offensive or even libelous. That's when it gets messy.

Chicagoan Amanda Bonnen is being sued for $50,000 by Horizon Group Management, a realty group that owned her former apartment. Why? Because of a 90-character statement that she made on Twitter to a friend. The Wall Street Journal's blog reported that Bonnen tweeted:

"Who said sleeping in a moldy apartment was bad for you? Horizon realty thinks it's okay."

Frustrated with a slow response to her complaints of a nasty growth in her apartment, Bonnen used Twitter as many of us do- to vent. Though Bonnen had barely posted 60 messages on Twitter and had only 17 followers, Horizon claimed that Bonnen's tweet was published "throughout the world" and severely damaged its good name.

Behind the safety of our desks and protected by the shield of our computer screen, it can be easy to feel that we can say whatever we want; but can you deal with the consequences?

Most can't.

Honesty Box, one of the many diverse applications on Facebook, allows you to send an anonymous messages to your "friends." Some may use it to send cute little compliments like "You're a star, keep shining!" Others may use it to truly tell you how they feel ("Your breath stinks and so does yo mama's").

Juicycampus.com was one of the most popular websites used by college students during this past year. With over 160,000 visitors at the peak of its success, Juicycampus ranked above many college websites.

Euphemistically self-described as an "enabler of online anonymous free speech on college campuses," the site served as a virtual bathroom wall for some of the most degrading and hateful fodder around. While many reputations were ruined, others dealt with paranoia and fear that they would be the subject of the next loud buzz around campus. The website has now been shut down due to a lack of funding, but it definitely left an indelible impression on fragile young minds (and some faculty, too).

What would happen if Honesty Box suddenly crashed and revealed the senders of all the previously anonymous messages? You might not get sued, but there could be repercussions.

While Horizon Realty will probably not win the lawsuit against its former tenant, it's important to remember to watch your mouth...some would love to do more than wash it out with soap.