Why I Really Like to Blog

My first encounter with the world of Bloggers was an unpleasant one. A boy, basking in youthful self-centredness, had posted rude and vulgar remarks about his elders in his Blog. Accompanying these remarks were digitally doctored photographs of the elders which made some foreheads creased, anxious about the wilful generation they are raising, and others turn red with rage at such audacity. Surprise, surprise.

When discovered by one of the elders he defaced and dismissed in his Blog entries, the boy suffered consequences which rendered him a meek and polite person afterwards. He always made sure he greeted all his elders courteously and never got into trouble ever again. While some elders continued to complain that the consequences should have been more severe, most elders cheered and rejoiced about their success in setting yet another wayward boy on the path to righteousness.

Then there are those who feel that a Blog is after all another form of diary and the boy should be able to enjoy freedom in expression. Sure there is a need for the boy to know that he must be socially responsible and not sprout whatever he wishes fuelled by frustration and anger since there is no real privacy in cyberspace but now, thinking about what happened in retrospect, I hope the boy's sense of self and confidence had not been damaged due to the reform-to-conform process.

Now, pardon me for appearing random: Thinking about the boy, and recently seeing and hearing people say how the Internet, particularly political Blogs have revolutionised Malaysian politics, I realised Blogs offer a voice and empowerment to otherwise insignificant individuals in the way it is able to reach the masses.

I myself have felt this sense of empowerment many months ago when I decided to take the Blogging plunge. However, as someone considered an elder due to my age (and the increasing number of white strands on my head), I am ever so conscious about the responsibility I carry on my shoulders. The responsibility towards myself to not sell myself short due to the need to vent frustrations and the responsibility to whoever who might end up reading my writings to not mislead them with self-indulgent rantings and raving. Thus, I find myself letting things I feel an urge to write about swim for a while in my head, distance myself from them a bit before taking them on. Unlike friends who prefer to continue keeping their thoughts to the diaries kept in locked drawers or secret corners of the wardrobe, I appreciate the process I go through before banging on the keyboard.

That's all I have for today folks. The little one needs my attention now. I'll let my brain takes a little swim before I write again! :)