“We cannot seek achievement for ourselves and forget about progress and prosperity for our community... Our ambitions must be broad enough to include the aspirations and needs of others, for their sakes and for our own." - Cesar Chavez
I decided several months ago to "out" myself. Ok... I'm not "out" in that way. I'm out by exposing myself on my blog. It is a decision I'm proud of. Putting my picture on my blog was a personal choice. Live by the sword (or pen...computer) die by it. In local circles, it's not a popular thing to do. Most forums/blogs are represented by nicknames (mine is "sparxx" for which I have had for many years) and users apply avatars that somehow represent the user in one way or another. I understand why people do this, it detaches accountability to a face and makes freedom of speech more "free". You can say what you like and no one has to know who it is behind the scenes.
My decision came for a few reasons. I have always accepted responsibility for who I am, what I say and what I do. Yet in the online world there seems to be less accountability and people can seemingly do what they want, and say what they want and get away with it. Again, I understand a users right to personal privacy, but if you are gutsy enough to criticize someone or something, have the guts to show your face. There are strong and radical voices in cyberspace, and it is important to accept a responsible approach in all aspects of life... even our online ones. I preach to my kids about standing up for what they believe in and fighting the good fight, for their honour and for those who can't fight for themselves.
Dictionary.com defines commitment as "a pledge or a promise, an obligation". It also defines the word citizen as "a native or naturalized member of a state or nation who owes allegiance to its government and is entitled to its protection." It is my honest belief that as citizens we must always work to ensure that we do our parts in our communities to make all of our lives a little bit better. It's a commitment, and one I take seriously. I take it seriously for me, and my family. I choose to do so because I accept that there is work to be done. As with many others, I do so freely and with the hope that our future generations will do the same. There is no glory in it, there is no requirement for acknowledgement, and while some may see this as "tooting" my own horn, that's their opinion and they are entitled to it!
I choose to blog for several reasons, foremost it's a place where I can log my thoughts and keep my writing going. I have tried writing stories, and poetry and games, but for whatever reason never found a niche with any of them. This blog allows me a little more literary freedom and it provides the outlet I need, whenever I need it. Other reasons are for discipline and for exploration into my world as I see it. I titled this blog "distorted visions" simply because I know that for the most part my visions are mine alone. That's fine, and I don't purposely seek to irritate or aggravate. If that happens... so be it.
I have to accept that there are things, people who will not change. I have to accept that in our island paradise there will always be people who are just not happy. People who probably do a hell of a lot more in their communities than me and like me expect nothing in return. Bermudians are great people when they work together, and they are great more often than not, but they can be royal pains in the butt when they have reasons to be. I guess that's the way it is in most places, but in such a small society such as our own, and in ways where we can continue to be great, we continue to find reasons to fail.
Good post man. I think that every blogger at some point or another has a self-reflective look at why they choose to blog. As long as you're getting enjoyment (or getting paid!) out of it then any blogger should feel free to continue to do what pleases them.
ReplyDeleteThe discussion about using your real-life identity when blogging can be interesting. While for obvious reasons there are advantages to using your real name such as establishing credibility, I believe that there are circumstances where people prefer to use a pseudonym.
I think one factor which was emphasised on one of the local blogs some time ago was that if you're declaring something as fact, particularly an allegation or something that may involve another citizen, you need to be able to stand behind it using your own name and not an alias that cannot be challenged in the same way. It's basically what you said in your second paragraph, I suppose.
Whether you're posting as Sparxx or as Phil, though, having your opinions and ideas out there is useful - after all everyone should have a voice - in some parts of the world people do not have such an outlet to express their thoughts.
We should be encouraged by the fact that we can express ourselves here, even if we get frustrated at situations in life. Yeah, sorry, I'm treading dangerously close to a kumbaya moment.