Image: Via Tumblr.
At the risk of sounding like a hand-wringing Jonathan Franzen disciple, let's all agree on one thing: While the Internet's many virtues include unprecedented tools for living life as a "self-starter" with a "personal brand" leading to career freedom, many of these things can also be not-so-virtuous when misused. For every worthy Kickstarter and hilarious blogger, there's an eye roll-heavy version resulting from someone with lots to say, but no desire to actually think it through. And, of course, for every great Instagram photo, there is the selfie; for every moderately tolerabe selfie, there is the
funeral selfie
.
Vanity in its purest form, the posts highlighted on this cringe-worthy Tumblr make Rich Kids of Instagram look like a collection of modest, hardworking, regular down-home folks. Again, all of us workaholics here at R29 are in no position to blame teens who can't put down their phones. But, please, please, have a little respect. It's a funeral. Perhaps a moment set aside to contemplate death's unfathomable permanence is not the right time to sneak off to the bathroom and take some duck-faced pictures of yourself. And no, tagging it #goingtohell does not make it any better.
Relevant: Posting on Grindr at the Holocaust museum is also, perhaps, a no-no. (Tumblr)