This Is What A Blog's About.

I sat down today to write something new, but, as usual, my mind became completely blank. So to get started, I started browsing blogs, and came across an article that contained blogging tips. However, it wasn’t the article that caught my interest; it was the debate that was going on in the comments section.

What are blogs for? Some people advice that a blog post must always be informative, so that the reader will go away with a new thought or idea in his mind. But isn’t that what newspapers are for? Others suggest that whatever you write about, make sure that you don’t rant about it. Nothing kills a good blog post like a rant, because guess what, people aren’t interested in your problems, and negativity in general. A blog should be useful and helpful to other people, or else it is nothing but a waste of space.

But I beg to differ.

What’s wrong with an angry outburst here and there? Besides, ranting isn’t always necessarily angry – it’s sometimes just a feeling of disappointment, rejection or frustration when things don’t go a certain way. People can definitely relate to that. A good personal rant can make for an excellent read by those who are feeling the same way, but do not have the outlet (or the balls) to express their true feelings. A child might suppress his emotions in front of his parents, but let it all out on a blog. Other children reading that blog will sympathize, and this child will feel better knowing that he’s not the only one on this planet who is being screwed over. Same goes for anyone who’s been in a similarly maddening position – a frustrated employee, a discouraged student, a rejected singer.

Rants (if written the right way) can also be quite humorous, so where’s the negativity there? Sure, it might be a problem that’s being described, but with a satirical spin on it, which can make for quite an enjoyable read.

Lastly, saying that people aren’t interested in negativity is like saying George Bush is extremely intelligent and did not deserve to have a shoe thrown at him ( I watched the video of this for the umpteenth time this afternoon, you can check it out here). Misery loves company, remember? There are a gazillion people in the world who would like nothing better than to read something depressing, either because they a) love telling other people what to do, b) are good at giving advice, or c) feel slightly satisfied that there are other people out there having a life worse than their own.

So why not give them some satisfaction?