Putting It All Together

Blogging is becoming more and more widespread and sometimes becomes an obsessions for some.

It is another level and form of communication.

Blogs are compositions that we can create with an awareness of a community but can create in the privacy of our own laptops, whereever we might be. But the community we are writing for may or may not necessarily be the same as the one we live in. It is not like a local newspaper. Although, blogs can report on local events and in a periodic style. But the writer of a blog, even a periodic blog (which may not be published regularly), may not be writing for the community in which the blogger resides in. They are writing, instead for an online audience, that may be only read by a select few (especially if the blog exists on the tailend, the lesser known blogs (not mainstream), of the blogosphere).

The smaller our audience is, the more freedom we feel to express our thoughts and beliefs. And the converse, the larger our audience is, the more we feel constrained in what we can write.

But could this be true of other paperleaf periodicals? Possibly. But contributing writers probably keep in mind that their readers will be local readers, the community that the periodical is featured/produced for.

It's Raining Blogs

Id No More?

It seems blogs and other online writing are like other types of published works: they try to adhere to a certain code of conduct, and at the same time, they try to break that same code. Perhaps the only difference with online writing is it tried to break a code of conduct that had not existed just yet. But perhaps I’m wrong. Perhaps, since there was no existing code of conduct to begin with on the internet, the old adage of anything goes was in play. It really was the wild west of the digital world.

So, it seems that this was a destructive time and perhaps, now, the internet is in the process of becoming a civilized environment, as O’Rielly’s draft of a blogger’s code of conduct signifies.

The destruction was probably similar to the wild west. People would be strung up and hung without much consideration/deliberation. Online, there is a tendency and a feeling of freedom to criticize and attack on a whim, such as on blogs, emails, or IMs. These places were those where individuals let their id rule.

But in recent developments, where people are severely emotionally affected by the language used in internet communications, it seems the id is no longer welcome in these places anymore (or perhaps they never were, but now there are rules to prevent its presence).

But should there be a place where we can let our id roam freely? I think people using the internet as a place to vent without much thought is relieving for them. It’s a relief to not have to think about what you say or do that might affect/offend others. People are always offended by the things others say to them, so self-censorship is difficult to dismiss. But should we always feel constrained by this knowledge? Should we have a place where we can be as brash as we like, where we can call people assholes without a second thought/glance? If it’s such a relief, perhaps we should.

Like other taboo bodily functions as flatulence and belching, perhaps our id needs to be let out or else its build up will become too painful to hold in and might actually do some internal damage in the long run.

Perhaps we need a place online specifically designated for those who only want to vent. While these may be rants, I think that the words typed while in this frame of mind should be taken seriously. When people speak, or communicate otherwise, they want their words to be acknowledged because behind them are some emotions that want to be empathized with and validated. But at the same time, readers should know that these words aren’t meant to hurt, they are only meant to express the raw thoughts and emotions of an individual. Readers and subjects/targets should not take these words personally. Undigested thoughts and emotions are not even completely accepted or believed by the person who owns them. This person doesn’t even feel that they completely own these words for this very reason.

Some mights say that rants and raves should only be reserved for the personal sphere and troubled individuals should write in a paperleaf notebook journal. Yes, of course, these thoughts are very personal. And, yes, a journal is one way to get these things out. But what if that wasn’t enough? Those who are troubled want their troubles to be acknowledge. People want attention for the troubles they go through. They do want a certain amount of sympathy and understanding. This simple acknowledgment followed previously by venting can be an enormous relief for those troubled. The verbalizing solidified the past into the past and the acknowledgment is the marker that buckels it in place. This helps a person move on.

I kinda want to start a blog specifically for this purpose. I’ll call it Bull Sessions.

Blogging Guidelines from O'Reilly

Blogger's Code of Conduct
(from O'Reilly's Radar)

1. Take responsibility for yours and others comments
2. Label your tolerance level for abusive comments
3. Consider eliminating anonymous comments
4. Ignore the trolls (a.k.a. cyber bullies)
5. Take the conversation offline, and talk directly, or find an intermediary who can do so
6. If you know someone who is behaving badly, tell them so
7. Don't say anything online that you wouldn't say in person