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File under: Free Bloggernacle Tour

For all those gingerly poking around the Bloggernacle for the first time, welcome! Here's a quick guided tour — just follow the links. There are three big blogs, but soon there will be only one since one of them is near death and the other is senescent and afflicted with navel gazing, and will die of starvation once they run out of guest bloggers.

The presenters were Nate and Kaimi, of The Great and Spacious Blog, and Caroline of Exponent II, which is the blog Feminist Mormon Housewives wants to be but cannot because of all the dirty talk and recipes. Other blogs referred to by name in Kaimi's presentation include Tales From the Crib, a great place for bewbie banter, and Mormon Mentality's version of the New and Everlasting Mormon Archipelago (not a blog; an all-seeing eye of Horus that beholds all posts from all Bloggernacle blogs that wish to be beheld, so its more of a selectively all-seeing eye, omniscient but only in a decidedly limited way), another favorite of Kaimi & Nate since it put them back in Box 1 after being demoted from being a Big Island to a non-descript shoal at the True and Faithful Mormon Archipelago. But wait, there's more!

At the meeting I attended, representatives of other blogs were also in attendance: Heather from Mormon Mommy Wars (a boring grrl blog that cannot decide whether they want to be Faithful Mormon Housewives or edgy bloggers) and Carrie from Tales From the Crib (an unboring grrl blog). The three presenters talked about what they think the Bloggernacle is; how posts and discussion at Mormon blogs are largely so unoriginal in content they rely on journals, magazines, or conferences for talking points; and how some blogs focus on LDS women's issues, from very bad temple experiences to sex talk (Lesson: sex sells) to mother in heaven to circumcision to babying your whiney immature husband and party tips. I might post in response to specific thoughts of the presenters later this week, if I get bored enough and run out of toenails to clip.

Handy Abbreviations for those eager to be insiders: "Bloggernacle" is often shortened to "Nacle", or "BM"...errrr...typo there...supposed to be "BN". The major blogs likewise have short forms that are generally used in blog conversation: T&S, BCC, M0 (for Millennial Black Hole, the one noted as near death above), FMH, MA, DMI, and so forth. Standard online conversational acronyms like IMHO (in my humble opinion - meaning "I am not humble and this is not an opinion, its a fact and you are an idiot to not believe it"), FWIW (for what it's worth - meaning "I know you are going to ignore this because you are horribly arrogant but I cannot refrain from stating the obvious truth"), and TMI (too much information - meaning "the simple fact that you reveal such private details of you life into a public forum, even anonymously, shows you need a lobotomy, or heavy sedation at the very least") also appear from time to time. Other useful acronyms for noobs trying to ingratiate themselves on the BM is ILYSMYAB (I love you so much, you are brilliant), SBIADYS (stunningly brilliant, in awe at the depth of your scholarship) and ROFLMAO (meaning "rolling on floor laughing my [head] off" when in the context of a joke or in the context of an argument it means "I cannot respond intelligently to you, because doing so mean admitting I am wrong, so I will now change the topic by resorting to personal attacks").

The lack of quality represented by BM blogs is difficult for newcomers to initially tolerate — thoughtful, intelligent discussion free of political slant and self-promoting pedantry is not exactly the hallmark of the Bloggernacle. I think the degree of evident contention says something about the BM and about blogging in general (I'm not sure exactly what it says, but I'm sure it's not good). There are all kinds of blogs, and they are all pretty much the same recycled rubbish from year to year: women & priesthood, blacks & priesthood, word of wisdom/hot soup/caffiene/danish beer, patriarchal authoritarianism, polygamy, politics & religion, evolution versus creation, blahdy blah blah blah....and since there are a disproportionate number of lawyers throw in legal stuff and how it relates to the gospel via really bad analogies (RBAs) although most of those appear to have been exhausted so they are less common now, mercifully and justly.

Despite all this contentious fodder, conversations in the comments are generally friendly and pleasant, especially when the heavy hand of moderating out dissenting voices and trolling hate mongers is applied. Learning how to argue mindlessly about religious ideas in a trivial fashion with those who look at things quite differently takes little effort and practice, so most people do just that. [Hint: impulsively dash off angry rhetoric and hit the Submit button just before going to bed.] I suppose the resulting virtue (for those who persevere) might be tolerance, but that really is just wishful thinking.

More in a couple of days, if the BM doesn't implode.

16 comments

Geoff J said... @ March 27, 2006 at 8:54 AM

Niiiice. Like the new acronyms

a random John said... @ March 27, 2006 at 9:33 AM

actually this one isn't half bad.

Anonymous said... @ March 27, 2006 at 9:34 AM

I'm willing to bet that there are more people who agree than those that yawn.
What a lovely facade of righteousness much of the Nacle has erected. Really it smacks of self aggrandization and priestcraft. Those searching for actual answers to their questions are beaten into others' mindsets or outright ostracized. A place that values intellectual presentation over spiritual content cannot REALLY be feeding the masses now can they? Glad there are others out there that think the same. What do you think it says when we all post anonymously because we don't want the hateful retribution of those that don't like our opinion?
Some snark with substance, loved it.

Snarkimus Prime said... @ March 27, 2006 at 10:08 AM

Comments from anonymous whiners who spam multiple threads will be deleted for the next few days or so, until the trolls go find something else to do. After that, they will be tolerated again. Thanks.

The Wiz said... @ March 27, 2006 at 10:41 AM

For someone who thinks the Nacle takes themselves too seriously, you certainly seem to take yourself very seriously. Lighten up, smurf-snarkette!

Snarkimus Prime said... @ March 27, 2006 at 10:49 AM

OK, Whiz, not like you don't have an axe to grind.

The Wiz said... @ March 27, 2006 at 11:18 AM

I likes axes

Snarkimus Prime said... @ March 27, 2006 at 11:29 AM

Careful, hun, you start swingin that thang around and you're going to hurt yourself.

Wouldn't be too hard to accuse you of hypocrisy for not following up on Tracy M's preaching over there at MMW to tread lightly. Or does that tread lightly thing not apply to you?

Anonymous said... @ March 27, 2006 at 11:46 AM

bring back the Chihuahua!

Troll said... @ March 27, 2006 at 11:57 AM

Trolls are natural, trolls are fun...

Snarkimus Prime said... @ March 27, 2006 at 12:17 PM

OK, you're making me laugh. You can stay.

The Wiz said... @ March 27, 2006 at 1:32 PM

Sorry, snarkums. No offense meant. You have to admit it was a great picture of an axe, though.

BTW, is it spelled ax or axe? Does it matter?

Ronan said... @ March 27, 2006 at 1:35 PM

Snarky,

Why snark Mormon bloggers for doing what good Mormons do everywhere: say the same things over and over and over and over and over and over and over again. If that's a problem, are you excusing us from General Conference?

Stephen said... @ March 27, 2006 at 4:35 PM

It has been so quiet, I wondered what was happening here.

Mark said... @ March 27, 2006 at 4:55 PM

Those who can change the world, do.
Those who can't, blog about it.

Snarkimus Prime said... @ March 27, 2006 at 5:14 PM

Ronan,

The Snarkette officially grants you, with all the powers vested in her (none), a pass on General Conference. The one requirement is in the 10 hours you would otherwise spend at conference, you go out and actively hands-on minister to the sick and the afflicted, giving them the shirt off your own back.

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