Tuesday, August 01, 2017

"Who gives a flying f@@@ about your holidays?"

This blog attracts very few comments - most that are made are spam, but one today one caught my eye. "Anonymous" wrote ""Who gives a flying f@@@ about your holidays?" as a comment on my Day of Rain post. Fair point - any reader of this blog is entitled to their opinion. A few thoughts on this:

What is a Blog?
This is my personal web page. The word "blog" is short for "web log" which was originally set up as a type of on-line diary/log. As I write this post I have noted that the "Day of Rain" post has been accessed 39 times (according to Blogger Stats) - this number is typical of most of my posts. Very few people read this blog, but I do not write for others - it is a personal diary. I don't actually care if anyone reads it, even less about their opinion. Of course I am conscious that some family, friends, and work colleagues do read some of my posts, so I am aware that I have a small audience. I publish personal comments and experiences, and while at work I write a lot about educational matters.

Who cares about anything?
Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and many other social media sites are full of "look at me" posts. Blogger is just another one of many ways to post about any kind of activity. I am no different than anyone else in doing this - I guess "Anonymous" objects to a lot of people and their personal posts.

Freedom of Speech/Writing
Can anyone write what they like in a personal blog?  Well I do, and will not be put off by anonymous comments. As long as it does not offend or discriminate - I'll keep doing so. Writing about and posting photos of experiences while on holiday is an innocent activity and should not offend anyone.

Self Censorship
Why read something you don't give a "flying f@@@" about? Surely there is a lot of other web pages that you could spend your time more productively? If you don't want to read my posts, do not type "www.eugeneoloughlin.com" into your browser. 

4 comments:

  1. Fair comment Eugene. Actually, I enjoyed the photos from your travels as they reminded me of my tour of Europe many years ago; you stopped at places I also visited whilst touring Europe in a van when I was much younger than I am today. For me it was quite nostalgic to see the photos. Everyone gets something different from posts and blogs. Perhaps your 'anonymous' was at work, having a bad day and feeling a bit green.

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  2. Don't succumb to the 'trolls' they are not worth the time or energy. As they say who gives a f@@@ about them.

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  3. I loved that picture of the town in the rain. Reminded me that I need to take a trip to the continent soon. The internet is a better place thanks to your posts of all descriptions.

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  4. I'll second all the comments above.

    I knew Eugene from boarding school back in the 70s and was delighted to discover his blog a few years ago. I catch up on it every couple of weeks. I love his great sense of history both in relation to his ancestors and in general. Long after we're all gone his blog will provide a great base of information and wonder for his descendants.

    Thanks Eugene.

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