Why That Random Guy Keeps Commenting On Your Facebook

As soon as you see the little red “1” pop up on your Facebook notifications 30 seconds after a new post, you’d bet anything that it’s him: that one nondescript guy from your chemistry class two years ago or from that random work training who always comments on your posts.

You can’t quite figure out his story. You send a smile his way when you see him in real life and he doesn’t seem to notice, but as soon as you log into your computer it’s game on. What’s his deal?

  1. He’s trying to make his ex-girlfriend jealous. If you’ve never done a little bit of ex-boyfriend stalking, you’re a better person than most of us. He may be counting on the fact that his ex is going to be carefully checking out his online activities. Is he chit chatting away on your wall? He might be trying to peak his ex’s interest.
  2. He doesn’t have anything better to do. He’s one of those guys who’s just always online. He doesn’t realize that you’re going to be up late at night dissecting his comments with your friends.
  3. He thinks he’s going to sway your political views. Are you a Hillary girl and he keeps posting articles telling you that it’s time to “feel the Bern”? Maybe he’s a political fanboy and really wants to bring you over to his side.
  4. You’re his “girl under glass.” In case of emergency, break glass. Maybe he’s already got a girlfriend, but he sees things heading south. Some guys want to make sure that they have a girl waiting in the wings before they can work up the strength to call it quits on a bad relationship. He might think that girl could be you.
  5. He really, really cares about Important Issues and needs to make sure you know about it. Did he comment on your ice bucket challenge video telling you about the people in Africa who’d do anything for potable drinking water? He’s either a true humanitarian deeply troubled by the injustices of the world, or he’s grandstanding and a troll.Probably the latter.
  6. He misses you and telling you that would be weird. It’s been a little while since he’s seen you in real life, and he wants to let you know that he’s thinking of you. The easiest way to do that until he has time to sit down and text you like a real human being is to like everything you post that comes up on his feed.
  7. He wants to appear witty for your hot friends. Maybe the right quirky comment will raise your friends’ opinion of him.
  8. He wants an excuse to talk to you in real life and doesn’t want to look like a silent stalker. Liking your status is the first step to talking in real life about something you mentioned on Facebook. It can be a great conversation starter, but he needs to “like” what you wrote online first so you don’t get weirded out that he was silently stalking your posts.
  9. He actually is a stalker. Run away. Fast!
  10. He’s crushing on you. Hard. OK, now that you’ve tried to talk yourself out of it, let’s face the most obvious answer: he’s interested. If you are, too, try pushing it forward by taking the conversation offline. And good luck!
Jessica Levy is a freelance blogger and content writer. She’s also a politics junkie, a fledgling foodie, and a frequent traveler. She has lived in Morocco, Israel, India, and Barbados, and never wants to be cold again. Follow her on Twitter!
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