It's always been coffee that's associated with my writing moods… but lately it hasn’t been doing the job in keeping me awake, so tonight, Red Bull it is! I'm listening to the amazing Tracie Chapman, and pondering today's very interesting blogger meet-up…
I remember when I decided to change my display name to my full name on my profile and on Jordan Planet a little while after I started blogging. I felt it was an important decision, but it was also a bit impulsive… I just thought, to me blogging is some kind of self-edited journalism, and I want whatever I write to be associated with me, I want people to know that these are my thoughts and not some unknown person's! Later on, I sometimes caught myself subconsciously thinking twice about what I was writing… for multiple reasons related to my identity being revealed! I found this disturbing… but still, I never regret the decision! It does add a lot of responsibility, and that's a very valuable lesson to learn and exercise on a daily basis. I know the internet has permanent memory, and that googling people will become more and more common with employers, security officers, and God knows who else… yet I don't feel I need to worry about what I'm saying, I'm taking my chances, and it just feels like the right thing!
We discussed the issue of anonymity today, and opinions seemed to vary. Of course anyone is free to blog under any name they choose, but do we want to have anonymous people in Jordan Planet?? One point Ahmad mentioned and I agree with, is that one of the reasons we have a community like Jordan Planet, is to open a space for freedom of expression… and anonymity contradicts with this concept, in the sense that if you cannot stand up for what you're saying, then where is the freedom of expression?
Now there are some anonymous bloggers who write wonderfully, and whose posts add value to the planet… but of course you find yourself wondering, would they be saying the same things if their real names were revealed?
I'm not just talking about political blogging here, I'm talking about all sorts of personal reflections, pushing the boundaries in tackling social issues and challenging social norms! Either way, what I feel is that most of the red lines that restrict our expression come from within, rather than from external factors. We limit ourselves, more so when we're not hiding behind nick names and fake identities. It seems to me that there are always contradicting forces pulling us in opposing directions… I won't give general examples, I will just tell you about myself; in my mind I believe so much in liberal values and ideas, but at the same time, there are these conservative forces at the very back of my mind that like to manifest themselves from time to time. Keeping the balance from tipping is intricate!
The recent 'serious' blogger meet-ups, as well as some of the issues being raised and discussed on blogs, have gotten me to think a lot about Jordan, politics, democracy, and the role that we are playing. I'm really enjoying the debate that's instigating… and I certainly feel that I've learned an enormous lot over the past 8 months, since I started blogging.
The issues that have been put on the table time and time again are by no means resolved; the nature of the community, quality vs. quantity, anonymity, the Jordanian blogosphere… Where we're headed is still not fully clear, but I think these are exciting times, and being part of this experience is… well… for lack of better expressive words…truly amazing!
(looks like high caffeine levels and being wide awake is not necessarily synchronous with a well-functioning and inspired brain ;p )
I remember when I decided to change my display name to my full name on my profile and on Jordan Planet a little while after I started blogging. I felt it was an important decision, but it was also a bit impulsive… I just thought, to me blogging is some kind of self-edited journalism, and I want whatever I write to be associated with me, I want people to know that these are my thoughts and not some unknown person's! Later on, I sometimes caught myself subconsciously thinking twice about what I was writing… for multiple reasons related to my identity being revealed! I found this disturbing… but still, I never regret the decision! It does add a lot of responsibility, and that's a very valuable lesson to learn and exercise on a daily basis. I know the internet has permanent memory, and that googling people will become more and more common with employers, security officers, and God knows who else… yet I don't feel I need to worry about what I'm saying, I'm taking my chances, and it just feels like the right thing!
We discussed the issue of anonymity today, and opinions seemed to vary. Of course anyone is free to blog under any name they choose, but do we want to have anonymous people in Jordan Planet?? One point Ahmad mentioned and I agree with, is that one of the reasons we have a community like Jordan Planet, is to open a space for freedom of expression… and anonymity contradicts with this concept, in the sense that if you cannot stand up for what you're saying, then where is the freedom of expression?
Now there are some anonymous bloggers who write wonderfully, and whose posts add value to the planet… but of course you find yourself wondering, would they be saying the same things if their real names were revealed?
I'm not just talking about political blogging here, I'm talking about all sorts of personal reflections, pushing the boundaries in tackling social issues and challenging social norms! Either way, what I feel is that most of the red lines that restrict our expression come from within, rather than from external factors. We limit ourselves, more so when we're not hiding behind nick names and fake identities. It seems to me that there are always contradicting forces pulling us in opposing directions… I won't give general examples, I will just tell you about myself; in my mind I believe so much in liberal values and ideas, but at the same time, there are these conservative forces at the very back of my mind that like to manifest themselves from time to time. Keeping the balance from tipping is intricate!
The recent 'serious' blogger meet-ups, as well as some of the issues being raised and discussed on blogs, have gotten me to think a lot about Jordan, politics, democracy, and the role that we are playing. I'm really enjoying the debate that's instigating… and I certainly feel that I've learned an enormous lot over the past 8 months, since I started blogging.
The issues that have been put on the table time and time again are by no means resolved; the nature of the community, quality vs. quantity, anonymity, the Jordanian blogosphere… Where we're headed is still not fully clear, but I think these are exciting times, and being part of this experience is… well… for lack of better expressive words…truly amazing!
(looks like high caffeine levels and being wide awake is not necessarily synchronous with a well-functioning and inspired brain ;p )
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