It is. Inform your friends that you don't use Facebook and ask them to treat you the same way they would treat any other friend that doesn't use Facebook: reach out and communicate through any of the other myriad ways available to everyone.
> I am personally not going to make that sacrifice.
That's fine, but any objections you have to Facebook's behavior ring hollow since you recognize the problem but are unwilling to do anything about it. You are thus part of the problem.
> I could also live in complete isolation in the woods and without friends
Silly hyperbole. This is not the end result of not using Facebook.
I can still object and demand government to do something about that. This is my legal right. If I quit Facebook it is not going to solve the problem on a higher level except alienate me from other people.
This is not a silly hyperbole. It would be a solution to avoid sharing your data with anyone. There are also other entities that could abuse your data.
> It is not as simple as asking to send an SMS
It is. Inform your friends that you don't use Facebook and ask them to treat you the same way they would treat any other friend that doesn't use Facebook: reach out and communicate through any of the other myriad ways available to everyone.
> I am personally not going to make that sacrifice.
That's fine, but any objections you have to Facebook's behavior ring hollow since you recognize the problem but are unwilling to do anything about it. You are thus part of the problem.
> I could also live in complete isolation in the woods and without friends
Silly hyperbole. This is not the end result of not using Facebook.