After I tried to log in I checked my email to find a warning that was sent a few hours prior to my account being deleted:
You uploaded a photo that violates our Terms of Use, and this photo has been removed. Facebook does not allow photos that attack an individual or group, or that contain nudity, drug use, violence, or other violations of the Terms of Use. These policies are designed to ensure Facebook remains a safe, secure and trusted environment for all users, including the many children who use the site.I can't think of what might have caused such alarm. Could it be the picture I made of BP CEO Tony Hayward in Jail? Could it be the admittedly stupid BP Megamaid anti-motivational poster I made? I have heard of people and groups getting their accounts deleted over criticism of BP but I don't think that is the case. I think it was probably the Texas Schoolbook Massacre poster I made which shows "Leatherneck" wearing a cross around his neck sawing through a history book with a chain saw. (See my previous posts for images.)
I recently joined a group which claims evolution is false in an attempt to educate the people there about it. Of course, every intellectual knows that trying to explain evolution to creationists is as futile as finding the non-fiction section in a Christian book store but I thought I would weigh in anyway. I even added a few creationists as friends in hopes that I might have some good laughs. Now, a few days later, my account has been deleted. I don't think that Facebook normally deletes an account based on a single complaint so I have a hypothesis as to how this might have happened. Christians have a way of making stupid things go viral. All it takes is one Christian to send an e-mail about some little thing that they find offensive and in minutes a small fire can turn into a raging inferno of ignorance.
I'm hoping that the Facebook team will get back to me soon and let me know exactly how I violated their terms. It is a bit ironic to me that all of this would happen at the threshold of Independence Day weekend.
