Tag Archives: social media

Another weekend, another bunch of stuff to alleviate stress

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This entry is part 93 of 100 in the series Today's Tidbits

Why, yes, you continue to get a proliferation of fluff in the feed. But it’s good fluff!

At least I think it is.

Creative. Witty. So wrong it’s awesome.

It’s the stuff that helps alleviate the stress that my life has been lately.

But have no fear! There are also some gems of real content in there.

Interesting bits of science. Some very insightful comments on items. Actual world happenings that we should all be aware of.

Check it out, enjoy what you can, maybe jump in and participate in a conversation (even if you’re coming across this months later… don’t hesitate to comment, I’ll see it and it may get things moving on that post again).

Here’s the feed.

Stupid Humans, Bounty Hunting, Bad Geography, and Aquaman

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This entry is part 79 of 100 in the series Today's Tidbits

Another busy day at work, but some interesting things in the feed.

Some interesting interactions in the feed today.

A tragic story about some parents with some really poor judgement (which lead to them falling to their deaths in front of their children) stirred up some comment controversy. Two very different angles on humor and ways of dealing with tragedy among the friends and friends of friends who posted there. Not totally unexpected, knowing the people involved, but likely a bit confusing and disconcerting to those who don’t know everyone.

The much more unexpected and interesting thread is the one about Dog the Bounty Hunter going after MMA fighter War Machine (the latter of which is, officially, a fugitive from justice after beating his ex-girlfriend nearly to death). That little ditty was one of the “trending” stories on Facebook and, it seems, my post (likely because of the high amount of interaction I’ve engendered among my list) was showing up pretty high on the listing of people posting about it. This, of course, brought in a number of people with no discernible connection to anyone anywhere near my circle of friends.

Sometimes, I forget just how… different… those a few steps out of my various circles are from the people I interact with regularly.

A number of the comments were outright all-caps screaming about how awful one of the other main people in the story was. A number of Dog fans offered their (sometimes poorly spelled and grammatically challenged) support for the “hero” to go out and get the “bad guy.” Others lamented the lack of “good guys” in the story (with equally bad spelling and grammar).

I’m almost surprised there was no knock-down, drag-out fight in that thread.

It all subsided quickly enough as, no doubt, something else tabloid trashy caught the attention of the general population.

Ah, the Internet… you never cease to keep me entertained.

There are a number of other interesting news bits that didn’t garner anywhere near the attention they should (really, I think that Dog thread, one about suicide, and the casting of Aquaman for the Superman v Batman movie were the three most active threads today) down there that are definitely worth the read.

And with that, on with the feed…

Bunches of Comic Con Things, Big Discussions on Israel and the Gaza Strip, Some Levity to Balance that Out, and Musing on the Culture of Fear

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This entry is part 69 of 100 in the series Today's Tidbits

There are no shortage of fear-inducing, attention-grabbing headlines out there. Most of them turn out to be utter hype, but you don’t discover that until after you’ve clicked through. And if you don’t click through, well, the damage to your peace of mind is already done.

For a long time now I’ve been interested in fear and how it gets used–both by us and on us. Part of that is due to growing up on a steady diet of classic horror films. Another part is from growing up through the tail end of the Cold War and a few not-so-cold-wars.

I’ve seen a growing problem over the years. One that’s not going away and only seems to be getting worse.

The problem is the overall culture of fear and paranoia we’re all soaking in… and have been for our entire lives. That’s the reason we (in general) are even suspicious when anonymous gifts show up.

We assume malicious intent.

That’s… not healthy.

And it’s most certainly not conducive to sensibility.

And, perhaps worst, it leaves us open to all sorts of manipulation. The kind that’s been used again and again and again over the past two decades to make us give up more and more of our freedoms in the name of security. Security from threats that, even when they do exist, are far from immediate, imminent, or actually damaging to the vast majority of the population.

This is the kind of fear that, at worst, expresses itself in events like those riots in France the other day. Or in people getting shot just because they look different from the person holding the gun. Or in war.

So, yeah, there are, indeed, things out there to be afraid of, but there are far more things that strike us as creepy or fear-inducing. We have to be fully aware of *why* it strikes us as such and how problematic that actually is.

That all said, here’s the feed starting from Friday (including the article about dolls that spurred most of the above musing)…

Detecting Sarcasm, Grumpy and Grumpy, Questionable Bling, and an Impressive Ninja Warrior Run

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This entry is part 42 of 100 in the series Today's Tidbits

Most of today was spent buried under many lines of code and text revisions. There wasn’t a whole lot of time (well, time that wasn’t spent in meetings) for anything else.

I’m sure I missed out on a lot of interesting stuff–with how the Facebook feed works these days, I may see some of it pop up over the next few days… but I’m not online quite as much over the weekend (usually).

I’m exhausted from the week. Technology and transportation have regularly conspired against me and just worn me the hell out.

The weekend has some good time with friends planned. Hopefully that’ll help, because Monday arrives with a full-burn final thrust on one project and a lot of catch-up on another.

wheee…. :-/

Bad Business, Intergalactic Bad Guys, Some Good Evil, Celebrity How To, and Other Stuff That Makes Me Feel Old

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This entry is part 22 of 100 in the series Today's Tidbits

There was a semi-lengthy back-and-forth in a comment stream today about how celebrities interact with their fans.

Over the years, I’ve seen a lot of different methods of interaction. Some of them much more personable than others. I’ve seen celebs content to sit behind their tables, offering nothing more than a well-acted smile and nod as their assistant takes the fans’ money and they sign a picture. I’ve seen others end up late to panels or other appointments because they stopped to have an actual conversation/shake hands/pose with a random fan (or five) who crossed their path. There are genuinely introverted people (like Johnny Depp) that fight to overcome their own preferences because they know how important their fans are and there are people (like Jack Nicholson) who are really known for being right bastards (and yet, on their raw talent alone, still manage to maintain some sort of fan base).

The ones who happily and willingly interact with their fans–something that modern technology has made a lot easier to do–seem to have not just a more loyal and active fan base, but one which is willing to follow the star to any new project and (perhaps more importantly) toss money at projects and causes that the celeb is part of or supports. (Alyssa Milano, a few years back, pulled in hundreds of thousands of dollars for a clean water charity simply by asking her fans, via Twitter, to donate for her birthday.)

If you are (or become) a celebrity and you don’t like dealing with your fans face to face… do whatever you can to avoid having to do so. Don’t let your management or promoters force your fans to pay good money for a half-assed experience that you’re going to hate (and they may walk away from liking you less). More importantly, perhaps, tell your fans honestly why you don’t do photo ops or meet and greets. Fans–real fans–will understand and appreciate the insight into you… and, as an extra added bonus, you may just make a real difference in their life by making them feel less alone in their own quirks and anxieties.