Blog Note

Sometimes people complain about Shakesville at other blogs. And sometimes they also complain about me, or make fun of me, or say things about me that aren't true. Or the same about other contributors. (All of the stuff that's quite separate from legitimate criticisms.) That sort of thing's been going on a lot lately, and a few Shakers have emailed me about it or talked about it in comments, so I just quickly want to say a couple things…

First of all, I think we need to be careful about judging harshly any blogs where threads like that exist. It's not easy to see other blogs trashed in your threads, whether you agree or not; it makes me uncomfortable to see someone who's a colleague, even if it's someone I personally can't stand, be talked about negatively in comments at Shakes—but if it doesn't violate the commenting policy, I feel obliged to let it stand. The same is very likely true at other blogs, and I hope you'd bear in mind that if there's another blogger who lets their commenters trash Shakesville, or trash me, it doesn't necessarily mean they agree.

Now here's the other thing: I've never had any delusion that Shakesville was going to appeal to everyone. That's the primary reason I've never felt competitive with any other blogger. I can only do what I do. (And, once Shakes became a group blog, we could only do what we do.) Blogging is such a personal and proprietary thing—I've honestly never seen any reason to feel envious or competitive or anything like that. I can only do what I do.

That there are people who respond positively to that will always surprise and humble me. But, even if there weren't, the content at this blog wouldn't be any different. If you go back to when I had exactly one reader by the name of Iain McEwan, it was the same shit—griping about politics (the Dems, too; I've never been partisan, ever), talking shit about my personal life, posting pictures of my cats, rape advocacy, and social activism.

I do this thing the best I know how. I have disappointed people before, and I will again. I have made mistakes before, and I will again. I have shown my ignorance and privilege before, and I will again.

Some people will think I'm an asshole, and some will think I'm a star. And they're both right and they're both wrong—because it's all just a matter of opinion, anyway.

[If you don't know of what this is specifically apropos, don't worry about it.]