Honesty often missing from blogs

I don’t like the title of this article, as honesty in terms of blogs is subjective, and that’s the wonder of the blogosphere, it caters to many perspectives of the truth. This post is primarily about “journals” as opposed to blogs, but there is a broader application.
dnonline>In the present state of the country, there are few things that aren’t on the Internet. One can post just about anything, even their personal thoughts through blogs and journals. There are sites such as www.livejournal.com that allow users to sign up for free and post their thoughts on the Internet. I have been using livejournal.com for about three years mostly in secret, and most of my posts are in the private sector of the site where only I can access them. read more>

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  • Quote from the article:

    “The problem with being honest is people aren’t faced with it on a daily basis and don’t want to hear true feelings. They want to hear about hearts and flowers – not about things that make you mad. It is funny to see how people will react when faced with honesty.”

    This is typical romanticism: the idea that some feelings are “true”, and therefore automatically validated.

    Let me give an example: I stub my toe on a chair. For a few moments I am angry at the chair — and the feeling is certainly “true” and “heartfelt” for the four seconds it lasts.

    Another example: A disgruntled postal worker shoots up a mall. His feelings are “true”; should we therefore accept them and not be allowed to react negatively?

    There is this consensus in society, that “true” feelings are sometimes antisocial (such as violent anger or intolerance), and should be repressed for the good of society.

    But in Romanticism, ANY heartfelt emotion is “true” and therefore MUST be expressed. The same goes for expressing disagreement; the more emotional, the more “authentic.”

    As soon as you express emotions in a public forum — such as a weblog — the rules of public conduct apply. This is called etiquette. Some call it “oppression”, others call it the glue that holds society together… others just call it common courtesy.

    -A.R.Yngve
    http://yngve.bravehost.com

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