"Ctrl...Alt...Delete"

I have been a fledgling member of the Blogging community since January of this year. Apparently I am far from being alone in this journalistic pursuit. Since 1999, when a user-friendly platform became widely available for public utilization, over 50 million "blogs" have found their place on the World Wide Web, with that number being approximated to double every six months. That's a lot of folks "just shootin' the breeze."

Since beginning to dabble in producing my personal observations on a semi-frequent basis, I have been able thus far to explore but a small sampling of the myriad of blogs that populate the "Blogosphere." Having just barely dipped my index finger into the mega-multitude of blogs that are but a keystroke away, the conclusion best drawn is that there is no subject under the sun that someone isn't actively expounding upon. The contents of the blogs are as individualistic as the persons penning each, running the gamut from "I got up this morning and brushed my teeth," to scholarly dissertations on the full spectrum of global maladies, to scandalous and malicious rants, and all shades and hues of subject fodder in between. So be it. That is the beauty and, many would just as quickly say, the scourge of this free form method of self-expression.

Opinions proliferate as to why the "blogging" phenomena has become so popular among the proletariat. I offer mine. I think many who have turned to this form of expression do so not necessarily out of a need to be creative or entertaining, but just to be heard...even if no one is listening, or in the case of a blog, reading what one has to say. The average American citizen has become more and more isolated (read "frustrated, exasperated, resigned") from having a meaningful voice in the national discourse. We are marginalized at best and at worse ignored all together. Our elected representatives talk ceaselessly about acting in the public's best interest, but concoct narrow agenda driven solutions behind closed doors that serve only their personal ideologies and/or the powerful lobbies that underwrite their political futures. To "blog" is to cut to the chase, circumventing nonproductive letters to the editor and calls to our government representatives. The end result may be the same - "No one is paying any attention to us" - but at least we've been able to vent our immediate frustrations and take swipes at windmills of our own choosing.

Secondly, unless one is a total recluse, many people seek personal recognition or at least affirmation that they have intrinsic worth, deserve to be counted, and that their opinions and thoughts matter. Deep down in all of us I believe there is a veiled desire to obtain some level of notoriety, to grab the proverbial brass ring, and experience our own fifteen minutes of fame. Through the vehicle of blogging a person is given a stage on which to display their creativity and a world-wide audience that may in turn applaud their efforts. To have a blogger "link" a fellow blogger to their web page is the ultimate compliment. It provides them with instant recognition, affirmation, and an impetuous to "blog on."

Which brings me to my third opinion as to why blogging has become such a gigantic infatuation on the WEB: "community." Within the millions of diverse collection of bloggers there are hundreds if not thousands of individuals who share similar interest and opinions, and by "word of mouth" or just through "surfing," these individuals have and are finding one another. To date my personal blog has yet to be "linked" to another person's blog. Nor have I "linked" another person's blog to mine, although through my own personal explorations I have found several which I schedule reading on a regular basis. I find their outlook on their own slice of life to be refreshing and their style of writing to have merit. Whether or not readers of my blog (if indeed there are any) would hold the same opinion of my efforts remains to be seen. I haven't even received a "comment," favorably or otherwise, for the twenty-five entries I have penned and published to date. So be it.

As long as I find topics of personal interest that stimulate me to ponder in depth, I will attempt to express those thoughts through my blog. I wish not to hold just an opinion "pro" or "con" on a matter, but to contemplate layered reasons as to why I hold a particular viewpoint. To exercise my mind through written word, whether read or ignored, famed or defamed, is of little consequence. To quote from Cicero's essay on friendship, Esse quam videri - "To be, rather than to seem" - shall serve as ample reason for me to continue forward with this endeavor.