Harriet the Spy

I've always been suspicious of blogs. Too many friends have gotten into trouble because of the things they've posted online. Take for example, my friend little marie and her experiences with blog wars.

Marie had a falling out with the alpha-bitch of her group and she posted her grievances on her blog. It was HER space, fair enough but others took issue with her because to them, she was on a smear campaign. But it was HER space to say something-- and considering the public nature of a blog, I do wonder sometimes if part of her wanted to let them know, to let them read what she was feeling.

Then the war began. Without naming Marie, one friend posted something that wasn't what i would call 'nice' and the alpha-bitch blocked marie from reading her journal. It's like when you're in high school and your barkada decides 'not to friend you anymore'. They whisper loud enough so you can hear, but no one talks to you. Marie tried to talk to them about it but no one was really listening, online or off. What's sad is that Marie was, in effect, bullied into giving up her blog. It was partly the reason they fought and Marie didn't want it anymore. Those sorority girls bitched her into keeping her head down and her mouth shut. It took awhile before she realised that it wasn't all her fault and that there was no reason why she shouldn't keep a space for herself where she could talk about what SHE liked. She has a new blog, but I think this one has a limited access policy. Real friends only.

If my information is still up to date, they're civil but not friends. They don't talk but they try to read each other's blogs.

These things are nothing but trouble. Hello?!? haven't we all read/watched Harriet the Spy? Sometimes, things happen around you that you want to write about, to make sense of in a notebook but it's always trouble when the people you write about get to read things which are essentially true, but in cruel, unedited format. (Not that Marie was ever cruel. But there are things that people just don't want to read.) Harriet's friends stopped talking to her and tried to pressure her into giving up the notebook. And when her parents took it away from her, Harriet was miserable because she couldn't be herself. I like to think of marie's new blog as a raspberry aimed in the direction of her 'friends' (who unlike harriet's friends, might never come around.)