Talking to Myself, Part I

July 27, 2008

The name of this weblog is Talking to Myself, because that is
what I need to do to learn how to put a blog together.

A blog is not a diary. A diary is private. I have a diary. Hell,
I have 30 years worth of diaries. They are bound books that I
write in with a pen, or sometimes a pencil. In my diary, I can
say anything I want. I can tell stories that I'm not willing to
share with anyone else, or stories that would violate someone
else's privacy if I told them. A blog is a form of electronic
publication. Even if I restrict entry to this blog, it is
potentially a way of discussing ideas with others. What I say
here, I accept that there is a possibility that others will read.

That, indeed, is why I want to write a blog. I want to have a
conversation with others. It's a way to help create the world I
want to see, a world where power-over is no longer a governing
concept. A world where there may be many cultural differences,
and differences of opinion, and differences of ways of life--but
a world in which no one has power over others based on gender or
race. A world without economic exploitation and a world in which
everyone's basic needs are met. Haven't I said this all before?
Aren't these all platitudes? Maybe, but I'm talking to myself,
and if I listen to my own voice I will learn the specifics of
what I need to say.

Okay. That's enough to start with.