October 27, 2013

Rethinking my blogging activity

Dear readers:

The reality of my blogging activity right now is that it has become zero (in both blogs) and that I need a serious and calm revision of my way of organizing my own blogging activity so it remains a pleasant hobby and does not become (as it has happened) a burdensome unpaid work.

As I see it right now, the biggest part of the problem is that I would like to read and comment on way too many things, what is a practical impossibility. This happens in both facets of my blogging activity, the anthropological one and the socio-political one, however I reckon that the latter is the main cause of my stress. This is probably because I tend to try to cover all kind of news, often of great interest, through the whole world, as if my humble blog would be some sort of online newspaper or equivalent. This "vice" probably stems of my long activity in counter-information media in which I often fulfilled the role of volunteer journalist. I realize however that I cannot do that anymore, not at the level required by the flow of news much less respecting my own personal needs of leisure and rest.

Therefore I have decided to go on hiatus on both blogs as provisional measure, while I meditate and reorganize my blogger activity and take a much needed vacation of sorts, something I had not done in years (sure: no problem... until you break down). This "vacation" may take some time.

I have also decided that I will continue with the anthropological blog in due time because I do feel it is the activity that seems more important of what I do, having a greater impact, applause and (arguably) need. I will still take that "vacation" as needed but I plan to return some time soon (at worst around new year, just to mark a deadline). I will have to be more selective however on what to comment in order to more effectively use my time in a pleasurable and productive way. I also need to be a bit better organized.

Instead I have made no clear decission about the political blog because I realize that the current format is not working for me. I need to meditate a lot on this but so far I know that the information blog it is a format that does not work, certainly not for me, and that a counter-information medium needs of a cooperative work and cannot be built just on individual voluntarism. However I do not want to renounce to express myself on such matters but I have to ponder very carefully how to focus my interest. Essay only is something that does not really capture my imagination so I'm pondering some sort of equivalent to what could be a small weekly or bi-weekly magazine (in the less regular blog format of course), with one or few articles on selected matters much more sporadically than now.

It is just a preliminary idea and I am setting no deadlines for the political blog's hiatus yet therefore. I have first to chew on all this in much greater depth.

Selecting is still a problem for both blogs and something that burdens me as well, but, other than eliminating those feeds that only rarely produce useful information, which are not that many, and being somewhat more careless about reading and pondering them, I haven't found any solution.

Certainly getting myself better organized is important. Also taking more time can in some cases produce better quality materials. So in general I do have that idea of being much more selective than before on what I dedicate my efforts to and a bit less immediate. We'll see how it works.


In brief:

For what they were... we are continues in hiatus but will come back soon[TM], hopefully improved.

For what we are... they will be is now in hiatus and I have no clear idea of what to do with it yet. I needs a deep rethinking clearly.

Comments will continue to be pre-moderated in both blogs because, even if the troll activity seems to have greatly receded, I fear that some of them are just lurking around in wait of a change in this situation (so obsessive they are in many cases). The last thing I need is to be away from the computer for a few days and find my blogs full of trollish junk when I come back.


Also those reading the Wordpress version of For what they were... probably want to follow the Blogspot version by the moment, not just because it is the one I actually write on (the Wordpress one being a mirror or backup by the moment, getting only irregular updates) but because it is where the discussions really are (although admittedly right now they are all quite cold because of the ongoing hiatus).

I have not been able to decide if to migrate to Wordpress or not. This is another thing I need time for. It's largely a matter of familiarity and functionality, so I would indeed welcome opinions of people who are familiar with the Wordpress format, which I find myself sometimes struggling with to get what I want, for example a sidebar with a blogroll.


Thanks for your patience and all your supportive comments, they do make a difference, really.

19 comments:

  1. I would like to let you know that your blogging activity is top quality, sure, and i would like to give you all my support and encouragement to continue in near future when you are ready. Now relax and enjoy your time Maju.

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  2. I've got two words for you: Mal'ta boy.

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    1. How can you not blog about the Mal'ta boy?

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    2. Good question but I will leave it for later. I'm getting old and what was in other days all bright colors feels nows more gray and pointless and kind of "been there, done that".

      I will blog about the Ma'alta boy and some other unescapable news and papers in my comeback almost certainly. By the moment I left some comments at your blog :p

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  3. I know the feeling. I struggle balancing my general interest blog and science/anthropology blog myself, with the latter tending to win the close calls lately, even though the raw number of posts is greater on the general interest blog.

    If you do continue to do both, I'd suggest narrowing the focus of your other blog to those subjects where you feel you are making the greatest unique contribution, e.g., greater European activist activity, and deciding to leave other areas of interest to others, perhaps while maintaining a blog roll of other blogs that do a good job of covering those broader topics. The blog "Calculated Risk" which itself focuses narrowly only on current raw economic data (i.e. a tiny subset of what the blogroll covers), but provides a blogroll of quality economics blogs that have wider scope might be a decent paradigm.

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  4. Hi Luis,

    We'll be here when you feel like blogging again, or if you just want to post something of interest when the whim takes you.

    Good for you.

    I'm sure, sooner or later, you'll find something thrilling to talk about. But I'm also sure that writing a great blog, day after day, without pay, is no fun.

    I hope you have a good vacation.

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  5. "to more effectively use my time in a pleasurable and productive way." Bravo!

    The world is awash with political opinions, but intelligent scientific commentary is rare and much appreciated. I look forward to you coming back to the anthropology blog, refreshed and renewed.

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  6. "to more effectively use my time in a pleasurable and productive way." Bravo!

    The world is awash with political opinions, but intelligent scientific commentary is rare and much appreciated. I look forward to you coming back to the anthropology blog, refreshed and renewed.

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  7. You are clearly thinking this through very well, and you have a good grasp on what your (time or whatever) limitations are - perhaps better than most of us. Those are important steps, and I am looking forward to FWTWWA 2.0.

    I have always liked how you have continued to remind us that certain things are not written in stone, and that there are huge holes in the chains of arguments re prehistory, the Neolithic, Bronze Age, and Iron Age. By doing that, I am sure you have made a number of young scientists in the field more cautious about the foundation of their work - let alone your contribution to science education.

    As for political comments, I have done the short essay thing many moons ago and very short comments, both. I agree that anything larger requires collaboration, which often fails due to differences in view and some egos trying to narrow the bandwidth. I like the idea of providing brief counter-statements to what politicians say or what is promulgated in the mainstream media.
    Mind you, our political views don't overlap all that much.
    Try avoiding be viewed as that guy with those conspiracy theories. That is, narratives have to have their own base in substantial evidence and/or reasoning - not on some long-standing mode of behavior that you may see, but others don't.

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    1. One of the main characteristics of my way of expressing in general, also translating in blogging, is that I try not care too much about what others may think on my, especially if their view is mainstream, i.e. product of mass-media brainwashing and/or the wish to "fit in". I take to be called "normal" as nearly offensive, if you get my point. Of course people wanting to "be normal" and to "fit in" may take my attitude as "hostile" (it is not to them personally but to their sheepish attitude). Sure: fitting in and "being normal" (whatever that is) is supposed to help avoid getting in problems such as finger pointing or worse... but what's the fun in no problems?

      I see things very differently: there's only one life (as far as we can discern) and there's no point in living it with fear, so let's dare to unveil the truth (for example). This I do (as well as I can) in my anthropological blogging as in my political one, as well as in other aspects of life. And so it happens that I do stumble in such conspiracies - not just "theories", as in "wacko speculations", but with lots of evidence backing them. For example there are a lot of highly qualified professionals (engineers, architects, pilots, etc.) who have done a great job gathering LOTS of evidence about how 9/11 is just a huge macabre lie.

      This should surprise nobody living in Europe: after all we have suffered for decades and decades the very real terrorist conspiracies of the shadow wing of NATO: Gladio. Maybe US-Americans have been more shielded from the dark reality of Imperial Power but we Europeans have been all the time extremely exposed to it. Of course it was only occasionally mainstream (soon silenced by the owners of the media and the police, who are the same ones) but we lived through that and at least I can't forget and I can't ignore that it is still there. Now comes the NSA (and others') police state surveyance mild "revelations" and everybody is outraged but I say: what did you expect?, why were you so naive about the nature of the state, the Empire and Capitalism?

      Of course 9/11 breaks the mold because it's really daredevil and so extremely Hollywoodian that it seems hard not believe in the official version. But as soon as you read a bit, as you investigate a bit, as you even dare to doubt a bit... you find that the official version makes absolutely no sense.

      It's just Goebbels: a lie repeated a thousand times becomes a truth. That's why religious people believe in "God" and most children in Santa Claus. But I was of the kind that got offended to be lied about all these things, so I stopped believing in the Tooth Fairy at the age of 5, in Santa at the age of 7 and in God at the age of 11 or 12.

      And I began doubting the official 9/11 version that very same day. Why? Because among all the confusing information, I was spotting striking inconsistencies like Atta being anti-Taliban (BND dixit) or his father claiming (to this very day) that he is alive and well. Later I gathered more and more info on the matter but, don't worry, Wikipedia is full of spies and police agents who control contents with iron hand in these matters (I know from experience), just like in any other large media. So the alternative versions, the many many many many questions and doubts, the pile of evidence against the official version... all becomes just "conspiracy theory".

      Well, only in the most respectable and scientific sense of the term "theory", which as close to "fact" as the human mind can get.

      And, of course, conspiracies do happen... all the time, just ask any criminal lawyer. They are normally not this BIG but that's precisely the most interesting and shocking fact, and what more can reveal about the creepy reality of the powers we live under.

      For whoever has some real interest:
      → http://www.ae911truth.org/
      → http://pilotsfor911truth.org/
      → http://www.ic911studies.org/

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  8. A friendly warning from a less than happy expat who no longer speaks of such things. The stuff that happened a dozen years ago is dangerous to think about too deeply. Keep pulling at the threads and the entire fabric of the curtain concealing the deep history of the last several hundred years will fall away. Suddenly you can end up understanding the big picture very clearly. But it makes one very sad and lonely. For what you know can ruin your career and has even cost a few people their freedom.

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    1. I'm too old to worry for myself and I do not have much to loose in any case... but I would find impossible to live all the time cowering in fear - we only have one life that we know for sure and it does not seem the best way to use it at all.

      And I'm certain that it's not just me who feels that way. Last time I talked of the matter with a US-American, she told me that in many states police had just given up about erasing once and again the "9/11 TRUTH" graffiti, so widespread and stubborn it is. So, for what I know, in much of the USA it's impossible right now to travel without feeling the deep repulsion that more and more people feel about such a macabre scam.

      You can't deceive everybody forever. Another thing is that, by means of the twin-party regime, it does not look like change can happen any time soon... but it will happen eventually. Ezina ekinez egina: the impossible is made by action. Worse tyrannies have fallen.

      What really worries me is that change will happen too late for many things: we already have all that impossible mess of Fukushima spreading radiation through the Northern Pacific (primarily) and the whole world, we already have depleted oceans and ongoing climate change, and nowadays the common people through the world is being pushed against a cliff. How much can it last this way? I don't think that too long (but every minute is too long in a sense).

      En fin...

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    2. The problem is that the inescapable conclusions about the fraudulent events at the dawn of this century are that the media, the political systems, and the economic systems are all based on frauds, and this has been going on for a long time. If one makes the effort to trace down the leading members of the organizations that are the spiders at the centers of these webs of fraud, one is dismayed to discover that the vast majority belong to a group who cannot be criticized. Most people who get this far ponder this fact for a while and become near hermits.

      I have been to that point and beyond. As you noted, the environment is what matters in the end, and the situation is dire. At this point, I am in agreement with the old observations of Jay Hanson and Richard Duncan. Humans are destined to consume the world until it no longer can support large numbers of us, it is our nature. Despite the mischief wrought by peoples and philosophies of Old World origin, the tendencies are universal. If a virus had wiped out everyone living outside the Americas before 1491, the descendants of the Aztecs and Incas would eventually have had bronze, iron, oil and nuclear ages with the same outcome. Therefore, overthrowing the current global elite would be unlikely to change much. Paul Chefurka has written a great deal in recent years, starting from a scientific perspective and eventually evolving to a philosophical one. Paul is worth reading if you have not read him before.

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    3. Everyone can be criticized, more so if they are holders of power and perform damaging crimes against Humankind (what other name deserves that). Why wouldn't be us able to criticize and denounce them for what they are: bloodsuckers without even a plan.

      As for Humankind's ability to overcome its shortcomings, I also have some doubts, but, then, on the other hand, I realize that we have shown to have the potential, the power, to implement so many radical changes in the time of few generations, that anything seems possible, even utopia.

      I won't be the one to say that radical democracy (true communism) is not possible. Only time can judge that, no I.

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  9. Looking forward to your return. Hope your holiday is a happy one.

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  10. Maju,

    Please blog "Mal'ta boy" - you have to ;)

    Thanks!

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    1. LOL. Send me the paper and I will (it's about time I retake up blogging), so far I have only read second hand reviews.

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