The price of free comment

« What goes up . . . | Cthulhu News! »

The price of free comment

by Vort1gern @ 19/09/07 – 11:02:15

Normally I blog too infrequently to be au fait with the little spats that occur here from time to time.

However after one comment on a blog, I see Grays and Helly have gone, and now there is "anonymous" posting on another blog . . . (I have to confess that the style is rather indicatively distinctive, but there's no way to prove anything so that's all I'll say).

Over what? Someone expressing their opinion, about an expressed opinion.

I won't preach because I too have got the hump a couple of times when a commenter has disagreed with my little corner of cyberspace. It's cathartic being able to rant, and it's part of the whole point of blogs that we can comment, agree, disagree, debate, etc.

Except that no-one (often including me) seems to want to. We like to vent our opinions, we like supportive comments from our cadre of friends and visitors (branded "sycophants" by one blogger) and we don't like anyone taking up a contrary position.

From time to time, I'll yield to some inner demon of debate and see a post on another blog that I disagree with and comment on . . . but every time the result is the same - a right proper flaming. These days I just try and resist typing anything, or delete what I've started putting.

This, surely, is undermining the whole purpose of blogging. We're not journalists, we don't have to screen our comments through legal departments, libel-catchers, press complaints or whatever (although some papers play a little free and easy with this too) . . . but the payoff to being able to express your opinion no matter what, is that it carries no more weight than anyone elses' and others are free to do likewise.

If it were pure subjectivism, it would be philosophically impossible to have any kind of argument, despite appearances to the contrary. But there seems to be more going on. We do not wish to be wrong in our corner of cyberspace, even when we tread on issues that may shock or offend.

Perhaps blogging is changing. Maybe it's just a 21st extension of what happens in contentious arguments anyway. Perhaps we should all just disable comments and rant off on our isloationist agendas, wondering if there's an audience who cares?
Options:
Tags:
- blog alert

19 Comments to The price of free comment

Hide subcomments

- ashee
- 19/09/07 @ 11:05:20
i completely agree with u on tht on
- Reply to comment
- Permalink
- deleted user (Visitor)
- 19/09/07 @ 11:38:18
Ha! You've provoked me into blogging when I should be working. Not many folk can do that! It's just that personally I welcome comments and views that disagree with mine. Okay, my blog's not exactly controversial, but on several occasions friends have told me point blank I'm wrong. Fair enough. No worries. Why would I take umbrage? My point? I'm not unique. Or have I missed the point? James.
- - Vort1gern
  - http://
  - 19/09/07 @ 12:00:49
  How dare you disagree with me!
  
  Just kidding ;-)
  
  No, I don't think you've missed the point, it was more an open question, really. I do like comments, and not just the "oh you're so clever/funny/witty/sexy" variety (of which I get none . . .).
  
  It's nice to get a welcome rebuff every now and then to (a) bring me back off my ranting high-horse and (b) remind me that other people are smarter than wot I am.
  
  But sometimes when you post a view - "your" view - and someone disagrees, you feel obligated to re-state your postion or answer some of the criticisms. Given that this has no hope in hell of persuading your commenter, it invariably leads to a chain of comments slowly attenuating to a column three characters wide, thanks to the blog.uk indenting system!
  
  This latest "incident" seesm to have resulted in a wildly disproportionate response considering the likely outcomes of the first posting (I realise that's unduly cryptic if you haven't seen them yourself, but as the blog in question has been nuked, it would be pointless to dredge it up again - especially as I like both parties involved).
  
  Perhaps we should all grow thicker skins??
  
  Anyway, your gracious effort at commenting has rather restored my faith in the medium. Let's see if that holds when someone posts on here and calls me names . . .
  - Reply to comment
  - Permalink
- G (Visitor)
- http://somewhereElse@Stelsewhere.com
- 19/09/07 @ 12:15:53
I agree with you. but when personal insults are banded by so-called friends in your direction, I feel the need to go back and stand up for myself. Balls to the lot of them, it's been done before. Two-faced people etc.....

Gone for good. Will keep reading your blog but I will not be making a comment anymore on anyone's blog as it never gets listened to at all so what is the point. Perhaps it's time to go to the pub or somewhere else where real people can discuss things without resulting to trival abuse of a person's attitude, ethic or sense of humour.

Peace to you.

G

p.s my reply on that blog in question (I have read it) was to Hecktor who, it has got to be said plays a hand with 5 aces in it.
- - Vort1gern
  - http://
  - 19/09/07 @ 12:44:28
  Hey G,
  
  Whatever suits you best. I'm never happy when a blog I've enjoyed vanishes (and whatever one thinks on the individual post level, you have made a big contribution to this corner of webspace), but it really isn't worth it if things are winding you up this much - even in pubs things get said and kick off from time to time.
  
  I've felt like binning this blog a few times, so can apreciate it when you think it's a thankless task. I don't think it's worth getting twisted over, so if you need a break, take it, get your head in a good place and concentrate on "Wonderful things".
  
  You'll always be welcome.
  
  Peace,
  
  -V-
  - Reply to comment
  - Permalink
- - rithompson
  - http://www.flickr.com/photos/rithompson/
  - 19/09/07 @ 23:24:57
  G, you haven't left over the whole people-who-can't-see-irony incident, have you? That's a shame, because your blog was one of the best.
  - Reply to comment
  - Permalink
- deleted user (Visitor)
- 19/09/07 @ 13:29:32
People get very attached to their opinions, particularly if it touches their self-beliefs, eg. religion or politics. I think blogs should be a medium for discussions, rather than arguments but you see very few good discussions on here and in the few years I have been on here all those who tried eventually left for other pastures. This blog is rather a strange mixture of a community and blogging which I'm not sure quite works. It is also, in my opinion, technically poor and I don't think it is a coincidence no major (no offence meant) blogger uses it as a platform.
- - Vort1gern
  - http://
  - 19/09/07 @ 13:33:54
  None taken! If I were a major blogger I would have to actually think of something intelligent to say and I'd be scuppered before I started ;-)
  
  I think arguments are best suited for forums/BB boards as there are moderators, rules and usually people will pile in if someone is being unreasonable. Out here in blogland, it's more like the Wild West, even in our neck of the woods (Hicksville) as opposed to Blogger (Dodge).
  - Reply to comment
  - Permalink
- deleted user (Visitor)
- 19/09/07 @ 13:31:39
Good post Vorters.

I think the nub of this is what you post for. If a blogger just wants to sit and type and not provoke comments etc. then they can do that. if they don't want to read the comments then fine. If you have a point of view that you want to express that may be different from other peoples then you have to expect comments and replies. I think one of the major problems is that people cannot actually argue the points that they are making and most folk cannot accept that there view of the world might be a minority one.

Personally I have strong opinions on lots of things. Lots of things get up my nose and annoy me. I will comment on other peoples blogs and would encourage anybody to comment on mine. Mindless abuse etc. can soon be deleted. Where is the problem?

Perhaps people on here think their friends (virtual) are the same as their real friends. We do not know each other on here only know what is presented to us by the other blogger. Therefore we have no real understanding of the opinions or character of our virtual friends. If one of them turns out to be someone that you dont want as a friend again there is a delete button.

If bloggers want to throw their hands in the air and say right I am off just because someone has upset them, that is their right. Seems to me to be a bit like cutting ones nose of to spite their faces though.

I like the term sycophants by the way. It really does describe some of the relationships that you see on here.

Well thats my opinion anyway
- - Vort1gern
  - http://
  - 19/09/07 @ 13:39:59
  "Perhaps people on here think their friends (virtual) are the same as their real friends."
  
  That's a very good point. We create our own little corner of the web here, project our opinions, views etc, and maybe we project our expectations on those that frequent our blogs, erroneously in some cases.
  
  But in order not to appear sycophantic I'll say that's well out of order and you're talking cobblers!!
  
  ;-)
  - - deleted user (Visitor)
    - 19/09/07 @ 19:29:01
    A fine riposte Vorters. I will not pigeon-hole you as one of my special sycophants just one that has not come out of the closet yet. Was Abilene talking about you or I? Now that is the type of sycophancy I can handle.
    - - Vort1gern
      - http://
      - 20/09/07 @ 09:10:37
      You I think. You're her secret blog-crush.
      - deleted user (Visitor)
        
        24/09/07 @ 10:43:04
        
        Yeeeeesssssss.
        
        Reply to comment
        
        Permalink
- Abilene
- 19/09/07 @ 14:48:47
Oh you're so clever/funny/witty/sexy.

Oh.

Sorry.

I think what irritates me ... and if I go off track just throw me a cookie ... is when people join in a 'spat' just to be part of some silly 'popular crowd' and it inflames it. Now, I am not talking about those who add something of merit opinion wise, but those who just jump in as sheep. I am not sure I am making sense.

Having said that though, I know that I may have been guilty of just that when I reacted to something a little while ago but I will not go back and delete as I do mean what I said and I really did try to stay out of the whole malarky until it got encompassingly (is that a word ..lol) personal.

Now, to the 'friends on here' part. I have to honestly admit I think a little differently of those I have met in person as to those I have not met. For example .. would I have done what I did with Boco baby box for someone I hadn't met ... I am not 100% sure. So does that mean I am wrong if I agree with someone I have not met. Oh fuck it ... I am talking myself into a knot.

lol.

Let me just go back to a nice safe thing to say.

Oh you're so clever/funny/witty/sexy.
- - Vort1gern
  - http://
  - 20/09/07 @ 09:23:11
  Makes perfect sense. When I was a regular over on Occult Forums, you should have seen some of the flame wars with a guy called Oazaki. He was a sort of Rev. Jim Jones of cyberspace, prone to making apocalyptic predictions which never cames true (because, he would say, he'd manage to prevent it happening at the last minute!) and had his own lil' personality cult of supporters in tow, who got nasty if their Messiah got criticised. It all ended rather sadly considering it was just a nut-job spouting off on a bulletin board.
  
  So I completely "get" the fact it happens, and how difficult it is when someone's in the middle and not up for "taking sides". I don't see anything wrong with wanting to imagine the best of people online . . . even if you haven't met them I think it's better to want to find things in common with cyberfolks than deliberately go out of your way to trawl the web and flame people. (Hmmm . . . the meds must be working today, it seems)
  
  And you're only saying that 'cause I was begging. Oh, the shame . . .!
  - - Abilene
    - 20/09/07 @ 11:48:32
    Share the little blue pills.
    - - Vort1gern
      - http://
      - 20/09/07 @ 13:23:55
      Are we talking about the Red pill/blue pill situation?
      
      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_8Zq_iWuFg
      
      :-)
      - Abilene
        
        20/09/07 @ 13:25:51
        
        Grrrrr.
        
        I cannot watch 'youtube' here.
        
        However, I shall choose not to divulge what blue pills I refer to .. if you need direction then you just don't need to take 'em.
        
        Reply to comment
        
        Permalink
- KarenF
- http://www.lordbothwell.co.uk
- 21/09/07 @ 12:54:21
I like disagreeing and debating on blogs, but I think there's ways of disagreeing without being nasty: differentiating between the opinion and the person. Also, I think it is important to respect the opinion you are disagreeing with (even if that is sometimes difficult).

What is horrible is when it gets into just name-calling and abuse - there's no excuse for that.

I don't agree though that you can't change someone's opinion. I've seen some really good responses that have modified my opinions on things like the Middle east, women's rights etc.
- Reply to comment
- Permalink