I wish I could say that my taking down the weblog was an April Fool’s gag, but it wasn’t. I seriously wanted to take this weblog down and remove any non-professional related material from the web as I conducted a job search. I even went so far as to hand delete postings at my old Manila weblog since I couldn’t remove the entire weblog.
However, when I saw weblog after weblog after weblog filled with such hate this morning, I knew that to take my weblog down now was morally wrong. If all of those who try and speak with reason, who try and see all sides of these complex issues, who try and protect freedom of speech, religion, and belief silence themselves, who will fight the battles that need fighting? Particularly in my country?
I can’t do much. That’s more than true. The most I can do is speak my mind and I’ll have to take satisfaction from that. Hopefully the fact that I live in a fairly liberal community means that speaking my mind won’t handicap my job search. However, I know that I’m effectively closing the door on getting a job in certain parts of the country with what I have spoken, and will be speaking in the weeks to come.
So be it.
However, there will be a new rule with this weblog now: All people are welcome to post comments — except for those people who have weblogs and don’t enable comments themselves.
If you don’t have a weblog, please feel free to post a comment. If you do have a weblog, and you have comments enabled, then feel free to say what you want. But I’m not going to continue providing a forum for free speech to those who will not provide a public forum of their own.
And I am more than capable of selectively deleting specific comments, so don’t think I won’t enforce this.
Am I being unfair? You tell me how the hell I’m being unfair.
Take a look at a posting at Jonathon’s, whose comments I’ve been appreciating. Notice how some of the comments aren’t even related to Jonathon’s posting topic? For instance, this Michael Glazer drops in some fairly vicious verbal thrusts about the Palestine/Israel situation (Jonathon’s postings were about sisterhood and the fact that women can be pretty vicious in our dealing with each other), but if you follow the link to his weblog — he doesn’t provide comments capability in his own weblog. Why is that Michael? Do you feel free to say anything to others but are incapable of allowing that same freedom in return?
Am I suppressing freedom of speech? Not a bit of it. These people have weblogs, they can speak on their own dime.
I’ve tried different means to communicate, including intellectual conversations, and poetry, and satire, and what have you. I admire those that can use these techniques and I will visit them and appreciate their efforts daily, as well as point out their choicest bits to my reading audience. However, these techniques aren’t me. I am passionate, with strong beliefs, a fierce love of my country and the principles upon which it is based — though these principles do get battered more than a bit.
And I will speak from an emotional base. I hope to also speak from reason, and compassion, and a sense of humor and perspective, but what I am and what I feel is going to remain a part of this weblog.