I've not been writing a blog for over a year now. It's a bit sad that I didn't feel the need to write anything here since February 2009. And, so... Now you're wondering what has changed in my life to make me finally pay attention to my blogger-site and has given me the gumption to post something.
Well, I'll tell you... It's this whole 'Facebook Privacy Thing.' Specifically
This Article from the NY Times.
I started blogging back in the old days... You know, the days when scores of people were posting long and occasionally well or badly written screes on the web, for the entire web to see.
I met many friends in cyber-space that way, these friends are still people that I follow, whether it be on their blogs (which I'm impressed that they still maintain) or their Tweets, or their Facebook pages. Some of whom I've actually finally met via "Meat-Space" and actually now know what they look like.
Back in these old days, we all had our cyber-psuedonyms. I was Tuckmac (still am on this blog) and we'd link to each other's cyber-psuedonyms, and even if we knew the REAL name of the person on the other side of their 'web-name' we wouldn't ever utter it. Now, it so came to happen that more and more people got onto the whole "Blogging Thing" and they didn't know, or follow these older rules. I became quite angry with some people who are friends (and they still are, no hard feelings) who would link to this blog with my REAL NAME. GAH! There were many years there where I was quite bold in my political statements, and used the anonymity of this blog as a cathartic vehicle of my out-pouring soul. I was outed. Many who read this know who I am, and for some of you, I wouldn't have preferred that.
(You know who you are FBI guy that follows this blog).
That being said, I can hack it. I have dealt with the fact that the World Wide Web has changed, and that there's nothing private anymore.
But, see... That's the thing. I USED to be private on the 'Open-Web' that the article above was talking about. No one saw anything about me that I didn't carefully vet myself. I was anonymous on the web for a LONG time... I liked that.
Facebook was meant to be private. I put stuff up on Facebook that I didn't mind sharing with people that I KNEW, but wouldn't generally be interested in sharing with the average Joe off the street. The changes that Facebook has made to their privacy settings is upsetting. And I'm really tired of people giving me the: "Hey it's the web, anything you post is open to everyone" argument.
When I post 'questionable' things, I do so via secret accounts, with made up e-mails, and no last names. When I post stuff on Facebook, my name is automatically attached to it. Now, if my friends see that I am bitching about a co-worker, then it's okay... But if that co-worker (whom I'm not a friend with on Facebook) can see that post... It's an issue.
So... I've wiped my Facebook account to as 'private' as it seems to let you get it. I'm not leaving Facebook. It's an amazing thing to be able to stay in close contact with my friends over the pond, and to keep up with all that happens in my friend's worlds.
I will tweet. I will Facebook... But. It's going to change a bit. If I have anything questionable to say, I'll probably post it here. I have a certain amount of anonymity here, and I know that no one from work, aside from my Lady know who I am... And won't find me, without some sort of weird 'luck' due to Google. That's the way it's going to have to be.
But, I've missed this a bit, so perhaps it's not a bad thing. Hmm...
Well, I'm off to enjoy my day.
-Tuckmac
Labels: rant
