Monday Mimisms with Mimi Queen of Memes ~ Score One For Hope

Yesterday I was all set to have my nails done when wham! I ended up in the slammer. And for what? I've been a busy little bee this week but there's one thing I learned from one day's incarceration in the bloggie jail. It's really true what my Girl Scout leader once said (I wasn't in the Girl Scouts but I'm sure if I had been she would have said it)...."You can catch more flies with honey than spam." Remember that lesson?

But let's get past that, shall we? Several of you have already confessed to me that you do it too. Having a carnival? Leave a comment. Wanna raise money for a good cause? Leave a comment. Want to save the world? Leave a comment. We can share a cell. And perhaps a can of well......you know.

I lost my Barbie doll brains for a moment this weekend and left a comment on Engadget's blog. If you want to hop over and add to the discussion then do so, but I fear it's already buried in a sea of gadgets. They promptly removed my link but allowed the comment to stay.
Here's what happened.
It's been interesting.

This is what I posted.
"A special day is coming up on my blog and in the blogosphere. Bloggers are set to blog for peace November 7, 2007.I invite you to join me - and a cast of incredible bloggers - as we mark our world with a promise of peace. Bloggers from around the world including 30 countries (and counting)and nearly every state in the United States will participate in BlogBlast for Peace.I hope you will participate in this growing phenomenon. Your blog. One post. One day. Please spread the word.How To Get Your Peace Globe. (LINK ERASED) Thank you, Mimi Lenox"
 

Now I realize I'm in the midst of the most left-brained people on earth. But they need a peace globe too. It might help the aggravation they're feeling over whatever it is they're talking about. Leopalds and Macs and OSX86 and Intel products, hacks and smacks and legalities and perky plasmas. They only ask that you stay "on topic." I was drowning in a pool of technology when it happened. My opening. Somebody said in a comment "....its like us being attacked by the Russians or something......." (!!)Again, in reference to a patent worthy genius gadget the likes of which sliced bread has never seen, but who cares??! That was my in. Ahem. Engadget is so huge you can branch off into your own little threads and follow it that way. So I did. Here's what happened when a bunch of brilliant techies decided to talk about peace globes.

1. F**k you.

That was the first one. How To Get Your Peace Globe was obliterated but "F**k you" was allowed to stay.
Response #2
"Yeah. That'll stop the war.

Call me a cynic, but a protest on the Internet isn't exactly productive. I admire the intentions behind it, but have to dock you several points for practicality and effectiveness. Nobody in the current administration cares what a bunch of bloggers think... They don't even care what the majority of their own constituents think............Some virtual protest is going to mean even less than magnetic car-ribbons and antiwar t-shirts sold by people who list "following Phish" as their career. At least those people are physically there and hard to ignore. Ignoring a virtual protest requires simply not logging in. I doubt the people who could actually MAKE peace are going to be wringing their hands over what is posted in blogs on one day, or any day for that matter."

He must have been waiting to reboot because he left a long opinionated comment. I seriously loved it! He managed to stay on topic by comparing it to a hacker's indifference for what corporations think. I told him I liked his response better than the first one.

I replied "Valid points, all. My idea is idealistic, unrealistic, pollyannish and downright stupid - a waste of time. So say the realistic cynics of the world. Today I watched 10,000 march for peace in San Francisco and the war marches on. November 7th I will watch hundreds of blogs blog for peace. The war will undoubtedly march on. But we're all making a noise. Same noise. Different format.
I guess I still have enough faith in the concept of hope to try and make a difference. Even if it's only dialogue, even if it's only ranting, even if it's only marching on my keyboard. Who's watching, you say?
You were.


Are you real?"




Response #3
It's an imperfect world. Whattaya gonna do?


Response #4

"Just because somebody is watching, it doesn't mean that

anybody actually cares."

Response #5

"Have to say, nice try but its a wasted effort. I see the point you trying to make, and you're trying to make a difference. Sad truth is, its wasted effort, noone will notice and noone will care."

Me: I appreciate your opinions and really, realistically this is like digging to China with a plastic spoon, but the truth is we can't make people care or for that matter make people watch. When I started this project I was in no way prepared for the response from bloggers I received. Bloggers want to have a voice. Come on, you have to know that means something. We're just marching a different route. But thank you for commenting.

Response # 6

If no one else will, then I support your effort. If everyone who thought "nice idea, but wasted effort" actually got up and participated, then there would be enough people that it wouldn't be a wasted effort. But in the meantime, I stand behind you.

Me: Thank you. Score one for hope.

Response #7

Urgh, I hate people saying "if only more people participated, then it would work". Not everything can be solved with quantity. Zero multiplied by millions is still zero."
An excited brouhaha from a spunky techie suddenly chimed in, "That's not a very good analogy. There's no such thing as "0" in the real world."

Sigh.
Zero multiplied by lack of understanding is still lack of understanding. I'm glad he used the word quantity because I can counter that with the obvious argument of quality. But it's only obvious if you actually read the posts. In this case, the effort is multiplied with more than numerical power. It is exponentially passionate, not quantitatively meaningless.
Passion multiplied by passion is still passion.
Read the posts, sir. Just read the posts.
Response #8

You want to make a difference? Donate money to organizations like Greenpeace, or whatever organization best suits what you want to help achieve. If you still feel like only talking about it online, at least try to encourage people to contribute to the cause.

Me: I totally agree about going one step further. There are wonderful organizations out there with noble intent and worthy of our donations. I also think - for whatever it is worth - contacting our representatives en masse is at least a responsible tactic.But then I had to wonder later. If what we're doing is so fruitless, then what difference will it make to ask the masses to donate. Nobody's listening. Remember?
Response #9
I wonder when was the last time anybody reading this went out protesting in the streets or in a blog?I wonder when was the last time anybody in America felt like telling THEIR government what they can do and can not do, instead of standing around saying... oh well, what can you do about it?I wonder when was the last time a person decided to take upon them self a task that he/she felt necessary? e.g. chase down a purse snatcher and you've done a good deed. Protest against your government, try to stop a corporation, maybe go for this world peace thing and all of sudden, it is pointless!

Me: Dons cheerleader outfit, fluffs hair and rah rahs. I knew eventually that someone in the left-brain bunch would see things my way.
I looked around. Yep. The laptops, the battery packs, the cords, the chips, the Dells, the TiVos and hacks are still hacking all around me. Until Tech Blogger #9 brought out the big hard drive.
"The world is not dangerous because of those who do harm but because of those who look at it without doing anything." (Albert Einstein) The humming stopped.
I wondered. Was anybody listening? Did a discussion between far-flung bloggers, one from Bloggingham Palace and eight from the King of Blogs domain, really matter? Would either one of them realize that what just happened IS the crux of the matter? That even their cynicism, their disappointment, their profanity, their cross-jabbing, their criticism, and their controversial support of such silliness matters? Would anybody admit that cautious optimism laced with a patronizing 'you go girl' attitude might just lead to change on some level?
Let's hope so.
I sincerely appreciate the commenters at Engadget weighing in, even if I encroached on their turf. They are a feisty crew. Their responses were honest. Even crusty commenter #1. I suspect that's not the last profane opinion I'll get. But I'll take it.
Anything is better than silence.