Why do people want a “Dislike” button on Facebook? It’d be poisonous to our digital discourse.Before we get started, I know this is a ridiculous article to write. How tragic the fall of journalism when its modern instance is reduced to lamenting a social networking site.But since nearly everyone has a Facebook account, this multi-million person movement is actually newsworthy, however sad and unsurprising it may be.Sometime in early 2009, Facebook granted its users a new way to interact with one another. The “Like” button allowed a person to approve of others’ posts or pictures without leaving a comment. It remains a sweet, harmless way to show acknowledgement, like a smile or thumbs-up. Users gave in to their  insatiable desire to be human some time later, petitioning for a “Dislike” button because, “Hey, how else can we let someone know we disapprove?”Provide a civil and insightful reason you dislike it. That’s how. Disagreement is not bad. This country was bred from dissent. But not much would’ve gotten done had our forefathers given only an apathetic thumb-down. I know, I know: we’re not looking to start countries here, but how ironic is it that people are passionately petitioning (with several exclamation points!) for the right to do nothing but lazily disapprove? It takes more muscles in the face to frown than smile. And it ought to take more intellectual overhead to express displeasure, too. What possible good can come out of installing a “Dislike” button? Proponents of “Disliking” attempt to strengthen their support behind the guise of “promoting universal balance” – a yin-yang justification designed to combat impropriety. After all, if there’s a “Like” button, why not a “Dislike” button? It’s only fair. So what if they only “Dislike” an obviously stupid comment or post? Help out the offender, I say. Sometimes it’s OK to rain on someone’s ignorant parade. But the beautiful flower of progress will not bloom unless you shine a little light on your position. Besides, if we’re so concerned with “balance,” look at the big picture and tell me there isn’t already enough disliking going on. This mini-revolution is but a microcosm. We find lots of disliking in politics with no real solution. We find many critics in film but few auteurs. Somebody want to guess the lawyer-to-doctor ratio? And now we want to expand the sphere of negative influence to include the second most visited site in the world? Stop the echo.Anyone can be an armchair contrarian who’s afraid of elaboration, but no one needs to morally justify a simple act of kindness. We see a similar trend every time Facebook makes a change. People hated the minifeed when it was first installed. They formed groups, threatened to leave and picked an arbitrary “member         quota” they thought they’d need to get their wish granted. Then they realize it’s not so bad.In fact, they can’t even remember a time before it. I messaged a friend who works for Facebook, pleading to keep the “Dislike” option off the site. He wrote back.”We’re not fools you know. Clowns maybe. But not fools.”You know how he ended it? With a smiley face.Jack Johnson is a 23-year-old mass communication junior from Fort Worth, Texas. Follow him on Twitter @TDR_jjohnson.—-Contact Jack Johnson at [email protected]