First, let me say that if you leave friendly, interesting information, links, ideas, etc., in the comments here, or if you write long, chatty comments (and of course don't take potshots), THANK YOU!
I love that.
Please don't stop: I am not talking about you here.
I'm talking about me! Sometimes, like, just now, I am horrified to realize I have been That Commenter--the one who fact-checks other people's posts.
Ha! Here's a wrong thing I could point out: this meme and most people who quote the original phrase get it wrong.
It's "Someone is wrong on the Internet."
PROOF: "Duty Calls" by xkcd
I don't do this too often on other people's blogs, but I practically have to tie my hands to stop myself fact-checking Facebook, where there are so many half-baked ideas and so much misinformation.
I want so badly to jump in with citations, . . and FOOTNOTES!
(I am loving being off FB.)
What's wrong with jumping in like that?
Sometimes, nothing!
As I said up top, if a friendly commenter shares ideas or information of mutual interest, that's a conversation. That's a good thing.
Or, personally, if I made an error of any importance, I'd probably be happy if someone told me.
It took me a while to realize, for instance, that Les Misérables is about the 1832 Paris Uprising, not the 1848 one of Flaubert's Sentimental Education as I had written in a post here.
If someone had pointed that out to me, I wouldn't mind. (Don't feel you must take it upon yourself--it's a chore.)
But the thing is, I recognize in myself a chiding or competitive impulse when I compose a fact-checky comment. Ick. I don't like that in myself.
I found this key to good comments:
"the intent is to forge a relationship, not to self promote."
I left a questionable comment this morning, then deleted it.
I know bloggers see all comments, even deleted ones, and thankfully, it wasn't awful––in fact, it was kind of interesting (or so I thought).
In context, however, if I were a fellow commenter reading it, I would think,
"Oh, Here comes that commenter, the Tidy Librarian of the Internet".
You don't have to be a man to be a mansplainer. (I don't think I was ever that bad...)
Finally, appointing yourself the Janitor or Police or Editor of the Internet is––and I'm talking to myself here––pointless and, quite rightly, thankless.
If other people (especially ones you don't know) don't bother to google stuff, they don't want you to do it for them.
The scroll-over message (what do you call that?) of the xkcd's "Duty Calls" reads,
"What do you want me to do? LEAVE? Then they'll keep being wrong!"
Henceforth, I shall consider myself relieved of duty.
Tra la! Tra la!
I love that.
Please don't stop: I am not talking about you here.
I'm talking about me! Sometimes, like, just now, I am horrified to realize I have been That Commenter--the one who fact-checks other people's posts.
 |
| Yes. Yes, I did. --Fresca |
It's "Someone is wrong on the Internet."
PROOF: "Duty Calls" by xkcd
I don't do this too often on other people's blogs, but I practically have to tie my hands to stop myself fact-checking Facebook, where there are so many half-baked ideas and so much misinformation.
I want so badly to jump in with citations, . . and FOOTNOTES!
(I am loving being off FB.)
What's wrong with jumping in like that?
Sometimes, nothing!
As I said up top, if a friendly commenter shares ideas or information of mutual interest, that's a conversation. That's a good thing.
Or, personally, if I made an error of any importance, I'd probably be happy if someone told me.
It took me a while to realize, for instance, that Les Misérables is about the 1832 Paris Uprising, not the 1848 one of Flaubert's Sentimental Education as I had written in a post here.
If someone had pointed that out to me, I wouldn't mind. (Don't feel you must take it upon yourself--it's a chore.)
But the thing is, I recognize in myself a chiding or competitive impulse when I compose a fact-checky comment. Ick. I don't like that in myself.
I found this key to good comments:
"the intent is to forge a relationship, not to self promote."
I left a questionable comment this morning, then deleted it.
I know bloggers see all comments, even deleted ones, and thankfully, it wasn't awful––in fact, it was kind of interesting (or so I thought).
In context, however, if I were a fellow commenter reading it, I would think,
"Oh, Here comes that commenter, the Tidy Librarian of the Internet".
You don't have to be a man to be a mansplainer. (I don't think I was ever that bad...)
Finally, appointing yourself the Janitor or Police or Editor of the Internet is––and I'm talking to myself here––pointless and, quite rightly, thankless.
If other people (especially ones you don't know) don't bother to google stuff, they don't want you to do it for them.
The scroll-over message (what do you call that?) of the xkcd's "Duty Calls" reads,
"What do you want me to do? LEAVE? Then they'll keep being wrong!"
Henceforth, I shall consider myself relieved of duty.
Tra la! Tra la!
