Gripe ho

I was getting a little testy today as I read my way through the Times and Telegraph online. The first irritating episode was reading that 99.999999% of all blogs are not worth reading, and I can't remember where I read it but if I find it again, I'll post the link. It was made by some big time journalist and it made me very cross.

What does he mean by 'worth reading'? According to what criteria? His? The majority of blogs are written for a small audience, sometimes just a family. They are worth reading by that community of readers and have no aspirations for global fame. Are they thus, by definition, 'worthless'? Just because most writers don't write for millions it doesn't mean their blogs are 'not worth reading'.

Just because a blog is written by a big time journalist doesn't make it 'worth reading' either. Look at what has become of the Telegraph blogs since Colin Randall left. Most rarely inspire comments, and when they do, the numbers often hover under 5. How would they fare out of the rarified atmosphere of the online journal, in the cut and thrust of the blogosphere?

That was gripe #1. The second comes from one of those blogs, the one by Lila Das Gupta. Now, I'm sure she's a lovely lady and she means well, but really. The arrogance of it. She's undertaking an experiment not to go shopping for a whole year and write about her horrific experiences. Oh my goodness, what a trial! The poor thing, how will she survive?

I made a rather caustic comment on her blog to the effect that what she is describing as a gung-ho lifestyle experiment describes my life, so big deal. Only, at the end of her traumatic year, she'll have saved up a lovely lot of dosh to pay off her mortgage or go out for a mega shop while the rest of us on a tight budget continue not to go shopping.

But, wow, is it like really possible not to go shopping??? Pah.