Gray Maine now boasts its 9th blog. I blogged about the plethora of blogs, on The Monument site a couple of months ago. At that time, there were 7.
Anyway, the townspeople of late have gotten on the blog bandwagon. Me included, of course. But when the recall heated up last spring, so did the blogs. Blogs about Gray sprouted like mushrooms and some died as quickly. Many of them claim to seek 'civility.' There is a difference in seeking it and living it, though. If you lead by example then you will receive what you sow.
Aside from this blog, there’s “Black and White in Gray” run by Paul Proudian and the Gray News. It claims to expose the dysfunctional politics of Gray, Maine by calling people 'viral implants' and 'Hitler'. Paul Proudian's blog exemplified incivility and worse. The blog is moribund, now. Maybe the town is no longer 'dysfunctional'. It's good the blog isn't functioning, frankly.
Gray activist Sharon Bondroff started one called www.crazyingray.blogspot.com but it petered out, though it still exists online.
For a while there was a blog run by anonymous “Batgirl” called www.graydissidents.blogspot.com. Batgirl’s blog got ugly fast and then it was deleted by the originator. Common knowledge put that blog's authorship on Gray News's Nathan Tsukroff.
Almost immediately, though, a blog that mimicked the Batgirl blog was started by anonymous BiasBuster. It busts the bias of The Gray News. It has kept going and nobody knows who Biasbuster is.
Recently another blog started called The Heart of Gray Maine: Finding The Truth Within Heart of Our Community.” It’s run by an anonymous person called “TinMan” and its tagline is: “Finding the TRUTH Exposing the LIES Healing the HURTS Stopping the HATE.” That blog we now know is run by Debbie Shaw Mancini. Debbie stops the hate by calling opinions she doesn't like 'vile spewings.' Civility eludes that particular blog, in my opinion.
Then, a mimic blog to Debbie's started called “Land of Doh-z!: The Soul of Gray, Maine: Saving the Soul of a Community.” It’s run by an anonymous person called “Tiny-Man” and it's absolutely hilarious. Not politically correct, but spoofily hilarious. My favorite post was Fall Movie Releases
I started The Quiet Life this summer. And now we have "A Gray Agora" run by Publicus, who says he wants "civil, constructive, and productive debate on the issues " and goes on to mention that occasionally we "get whipped up into that old mob mentality, and we capriciously execute our charges ...Often just because we can." Capricious executions and civility are usually mutually exclusive.
Personally, I think it's Paul Proudian again. Or his clone. Decide for yourself:
Paul Proudian, Gray News: Down the Iraq Memory Hole
Publicus, on his blog: A View Down the Rabbithole
Publicus's favorite phrase: 'fails to grasp' .
Proudian's favorite phrase: 'fails to grasp'.
Given the recall people's track record with blogs, I hold slim hope that Publicus's blog will fare any better. It already started off with an unfortunate tone of derision. It's not easy to run a blog that encourages thoughtful debate, but I hope that one of the blogs, at least, will make people proud that their town's name is in the title.
Blog on.
4 comments:
Nah that's not Proudian. Probably Barter.
Could be! It has that tone. No matter who it is, I find it distasteful.
It's just more of the same old stuff. We need more heart and less heartburn around here!
The heart you're looking for is in the Village Master Plan Advisory Committee! Full of optimism, good natured collaboration, and productivity. Kudos to them!
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