One Day Blog Silence is a call for one day of inaction in the blogosphere in honor of the victims of the VA Tech massacre. Does this kind of silence really “say” anything? It kind of strikes me as an easy way for people to feel like they are a part of something significant without actually doing anything. However, my judgment (for what it’s worth) is pending further discussion.
Anyone have an opinion about this?
i have to say… i kind of agree with you. i hate to sound cynical… but i see no point to this except giving good feelings to the people who feel like they can’t really do anything (because they can’t)… unless they have friends or loved ones affected and can be there personally for them. it seems a little self-serving or something… like, feel good becuase you sacrificed posting on your blog for one day.
maybe i’m totally jaded. it might actually be a cool thing to surf people’s blogs and see this logo on all of them for one day. but… i still ask – does it do or say anything, really, except make those of us left here feel emotional?
I don’t think its necessarily a call to “say” something as much as its a way to remember the lives that were lost. And yes there is that feeling that “I am doing something” by simply not doing anything at all which seems backwards but I like the idea that for one day, “the blogosphere” was simply silent to mark a horrible event that took place.
the thing I keep thinking about is lowering flags. does this do anything other than let people know that we are to be mourning. Turning your headlights on in a funeral procession? Can all of these things be put into the same category? I haven’t read the post or know what this is even really about but can gather from Lauren and Rachel’s comments but I think that is just like lowering flags. Similar to secular fasting? Life may go on and tons of people will still live life but if people want to grieve with those who have lost via no blogging I say go for it.
I think this is a symptom of a bigger and potentially crippling problem that is starting to pop up in the young people in our so called “Gen Y”. I am starting to notice that people my age are not communicating face to face as much. I see people sitting around tables at resturaunts and (depending on what demographic is sitting at the table) most of them are texting on their cell phones… i see express self check outs at the grocery store – Ok, it is always an awkward thing checking out anyway cause you BARELY speak to the person checking you out, right BUT NOW we don’t even have to deal with that… we can check ourselves out – etc etc etc
Anyway, enough rambling…. i think we use the internet WAY too much to communicate and I believe it is possible that this next generation (that is now starting to enter school) is going to lack essential social skills. It does not surprise me that some people will see the above reaction (one day of blogging silence) as a real way to grieve. But then, I am just waking up and I wasted 30 minutes of a BEUTIFUL morning poking around the blog world… so I am going to go sit on the porch and see what the day looks like!
I have a more personal connection to Virginia Tech in a few ways. I lived in the adjacent town (Chrisitiansburg) for several years and have friends that work at VT and those that have children who attend. I have to admit that I feel more saddened by the events than some of the other school shootings. It’s not that the lives lost there were any more important than those of Columbine or others, it’s just that it hits closer to home and seems to be so much more real.
That being said, I can’t say that I’m all that compelled to participate in a day of blogging silence as a way to memorialize those slain at VT. I think that while on the surface it seems like a noble gesture, I do think it’s kind of arrogant to think that one’s blog is so important that a day of no posts somehow is significant. I agree that the way we communicate these days is become less personal. Can we really grieve collaterally over the Internet? How can not posting on a blog really express what everyone is feeling.
To each his own I guess. If you feel strongly that this is a valid way to express your feelings then go for it. I think I’ll tak e another route.
I think I’ve finally developed an opinion on this sort of thing. I think One Day Blog Silence could be helpful at the individual level in terms of taking time off from blogging to reflect on how dark humanity is and what that says about you. Where does hope and justice ultimately come from? How can you participate daily in beating back the darkness online and elsewhere?
In and of itself, I think the “cause” falls a bit short. In the end, whether my blog is silent or not has absolutely no impact on the world. It is what motivate my silence or my song that makes all the difference.
I agree that days of silence like this can result in “slactivism” if we just post a badge and let it stop there. But when engaging conversation ensues and hearts are changed it’s a worthwhile conversation.
I can’t add anything to what Ken Sande has already said at Peacemaker Ministries:
The full article is certainly worth the time it takes to read it. http://www.peacemaker.net/site/c.aqKFLTOBIpH/b.2703571/k.7D0B/You_Can_Stop_the_Killing.htm
I’m a big fan of Peacemaker Ministries. They did a seminar/conference deal at our church in Minneapolis a few years back. Those couple of days have shaped me (and my marriage) a lot. I’ll definitely block out some time to read that article.