"There are a lot of people who are essentially forced to be on Facebook due to social obligations."
While I don't agree with John in this case (which is unusual), nobody is forced to be on Facebook. You have the option to choose between privacy and social pressure. Many of us have chosen to not create an account and haven't suffered in the least because of it.
All the examples in this thread of reasons you're "forced" to be on the site amount to missing parties and not seeing pictures -- and it's a really vapid argument. It might suck to not see those pictures, but there's nobody forcing you to do so. It's still entirely up to you.
To clarify, I am not victim blaming. This argument is addressing the claim that a Facebook account is a requirement of youth. It is not. Choosing privacy over pleasure might be an unattractive option for some but it's an option all the same.