President Obama is touring China right now, and during a speaking engagement with a group of Shanghai students Obama admitted to not using Twitter. Obama says that his thumbs are too clumsy to type on his mobile phone--a necessity for busy Twitter users always on the go.

The fact that President Obama is a heavy advocate of the government's transparent use of social media and is known for using his Blackberry means that Obama may be expected to utilize Twitter more regularly than, say, never.

Aside from his inability to use Twitter, President Obama also took the Twitter topic of discussion to speak on the first amendment right of free speech. Social media represents the user-generated culture that is becoming ingrained in our society on a daily basis. When you consider the real time implications of services like Twitter, that ingraining of user-generated content is instilled on a second-by-second basis. The platforms on which social media rest have presented the world with opportunities o speak their mind freely, discuss issues with others and become a respected authority in their own right.

Even if an individual does not become a respected authority, it is clear that sites like Twitter, Facebook and Sodahead have given its users the ability to voice their opinions with little fear of being
prosecuted. Socially shunned, perhaps, but rarely driven to legal action when it comes to one's rights to blog, comment and post multimedia content across the web.

President Obama highlighted these rights, noting an inner desire to not have to deal with the criticism he often receives as a result of un-gated tweets. Nevertheless, Obama respects the rights of others to their opinions and their ability to freely share those opinions across the
social web.

This is an understated freedom that is often taken for granted by citizens in the United States. China is known for its regulated implementation of the Internet, causing controversy and angst by many
freedom of speech advocates. Having President Obama speak on these rights to students in Shanghai emphasizes his desire to promote the values of democracy across the world.

The biggest takeaway, however, is the full circle this seemingly tiny occurrence has brought to the discussion of the Internet, individual rights and global relations. As I mentioned before, social media has provided a runway of opportunity for the individual user to share their mental energy with the world. Every blog entry, comment an other piece of shared media has an impact on our society at large, reflecting the developing changes of our human nature.

For President Obama and his administration, tapping into this shared energy is a way in which the relationship between users and the government can be improved. One lesson to be learned from Obama's speech to the Shanghai students is that social media can be used as a way to promote democracy as an ideal, even if it is not part of one's own government.