I think I like IRC as much as the next guy (probably more). But I also like talking to friends who aren't in tech, like those from childhood, high school, or college, and who went into medical school or business or who simply write code during the day and don't make it their life, and the one network we have in common is the one managed by Facebook. For me at least, I'd rather stay connected to my friends using any means necessary than die on a hill over a chat protocol.
I don't ever want to be the guy who's not there for his friends, and I don't want to be the guy who regretted not staying in touch with his friends on his deathbed. I think that's a good reason to use Facebook, as good as any. Just offering my two cents!
I get, and appreciate, where you're coming from. But for me, I really care about promoting and encouraging use of Open Standards and that - to me - means eventually dropping my hypocritical usage of FB and the like. And I don't see any reason to think that people have to "be in tech" to use XMPP, IRC, etc. But to the extent that there is friction to using Open protocols, as opposed to closed ones, I see part of my personal mission to be helping to reduce that friction.
I don't ever want to be the guy who's not there for his friends
Same here, but I don't see that being tied into being on FB or not. My family, and real friends, all have my phone number and/or email address and can always call, text, or email. People that I only interact with via IM are typically not the people I am closest to.
I don't ever want to be the guy who's not there for his friends, and I don't want to be the guy who regretted not staying in touch with his friends on his deathbed. I think that's a good reason to use Facebook, as good as any. Just offering my two cents!