Facebook, is now the home of a new phenomenon. “Planking,” or “the lying down game” as is also known. The whole point of this activity is to lie down on the floor or in any other location and capture the scene. This new craze has people all over the world lying down in unusual places, taking pictures and uploading them to the internet.

There are hundreds of planking pages on Facebook and thousands of followers, each trying to expose the best planking images they have. Some individual even created the NPA (National Planking Association). NPA tees are now for sale, creating a business out of this frivolous game.

“Two groups lay claim to inventing the stunt. One group was formed in 2000 by Brits Gary Clarkson and Christian Langdon as the "lying down game," while the other started eight years later in South Australia as ‘planking.’ Both have rival Facebook sites.” Is this kind of rivalry that pushes plankers to thrive for more deviant plank scenes, which many times are immoral, illegal and above all, dangerous. People have lost their jobs, gotten arrested and even die due to planking. A 16 year was the first South Australian arrested for planking-related charges; she was arrested while she was planking in the roof of a police car, her excuse: “because it’s awesome.” She says that her next plank is going to be on top of a moving train.

Simon Hallan, a twenty-year-old man from south Wales attempted something equally idiotic to the teen’s goal. He decided to plank in the roof of a car while it was moving, he is now in a comma fighting for his life. “These is the kinds of things that always happens with too much time, alcohol and bad associations," said Robert Hallan, the victims brother.

The most tragic incident due to this stupid activity so far is the case of Acton Beale, a 20 year-old man who die when he tried to plank from the railings of a seven story balcony at Brisbane, Queensland. Authorities said that he “may have fallen while attempting a planking episode” A witness said that he was preparing to lay in a balcony rail when he fell, and died. These planking junkies have gone to the extremes, planking at roof tops, bridges, dams, billboards and about any other place they can lay down.

Its sad to know that public figures are contributing to this ridicule that many police department around the world are afraid will become a major comflict. At the top of the list is Sam Newton, an Australian celebrity that planked on the balcony 40 stories high. “It’s good fun and you have a laugh” he said, even though this happened only hours after Beale’s dead. Also in the list are: NY Governor candidate Meyers Mermel, Teenager superstar Justin Bieber, Rosario Dawson, Kristen Bell, Kerry Anne, and many others.

This absurd amusement of the foolish has to stop. It’s completely unnecessary to risk your moral, your health and your life for an activity that is fully useless for anything that is not debasing the integrity of human beings. Use your time in productive avocations that will help create better environments, not in aimless actions that will blemish communities and even countries. Be safe; don’t plank.