The Musings Of An Opinionated Sod [Help Me Grow!]

Bad luck, I’m not stopping writing it … but I am stopping allowing comments.

Basically in the past few months there’s been a real shift in the tone of social media and there’s a real vicious and vindictiveness that is going on.

It’s everywhere.

Twitter.
Linkedin.
This blog.

And while I know this affects everyone on social media – especially women, such as Zoe Scaman, who get outrageous abuse for no other reason than having opinion that refuses to play by outdated rules governed by outdated people – frankly I can’t be arsed dealing with it.

It’s not new of course.

This blog has attracted all manner of insults over the years.

Some of it has been more than justified, some of it has been the sexist, racist, bullying bullshit you get from people who sound like they’re disciples of Jordan Peterson or Donald Trump.

In most cases these comments went automatically to the spam file [well done WordPress] but where they didn’t, I kept them on here because I thought it was only fair their comments were allowed a moment in the sun given my career has kind-of been based on that. Albeit without being personal, anonymous or spiteful for the sake of it.

However recently I’ve been getting emails – including some anonymous shit – and I’m over it.

Can’t be arsed with it.

I don’t see why anyone should have to put up with this rubbish and it’s everywhere.

I’m all for people having differences of opinion, but when you can hide behind anonymity and say all sorts of vile shite just because you think it makes you look big … then fuck ’em.

That said it’s not just those who hide behind anonymous words …

I recently got a mountain of abuse on Linkedin for commenting on a post about a woman who gave fellow plane passengers a small package to pre-apologise for their baby potentially crying on the flight.

All I said was that I didn’t think a woman should ever have to apologise for taking their small baby on a plane and my god … I copped genuine hate.

All from men, obviously, but it went personal and vicious within the blink of an eye.

Now I know I should be OK with this given I choose to enter the fray – not to mention being so well trained by the commentators on here who have been coming for years and giving me shit. But in their case, underneath all the piss-taking, I never felt you were getting your kicks trying to fuck me over for the fun of it. It was banter we had built up over years of friendship beyond this blog.

In fact, over the years, so many of the comments on here have taught me and pushed me in good ways. I’m amazed how many of my perspectives have changed because of the debate and dialogue people have generously and thoughtfully brought here.

The comments on this blog have also introduced me to a bunch of new friends and new clients … as well as acted as a weird sort-of social club for ex-cynic colleagues and clients.

This last bit was especially important to me – in fact it was one of the main reasons I started this blog in the first place – as I didn’t want to lose touch with people who played such a pivotal role in my life and career.

Not as pivotal as they like to think, but pivotal all the same.

Fortunately, as we’ve all been interacting and connecting for so long, I know all of you – or most of you, ha – will remain in my everyday life even if I’m now robbing you of your ability to send me daily shit. Or at least daily shit via blog comments … there’s still countless ways to do it, which I know you know as you have been doing that for 15+ years too. Assholes. Ha.

God, I’m making this sound way bigger than it is, aren’t I?!

All I’m doing is stopping comments, it’s hardly a worthy of a post like this. Though given I know how frustrating it will be for you to read this and not be able to slag me off, kind-of makes it worth it.

To be honest, I started thinking about doing this when my beloved Martin Weigel stopped comments on his blog a while back … but the reality is I’ve always loved waking up to a range of thoughts, ideas and discussion points from posts I’ve stupidly set to automatically publish while I’m asleep, haha.

That said, by doing this, I’m pretty sure I’m doing my bit to help work efficiency because not only will I not need to check this blog every 2 mins for comments … it will help you lot all be better husband/wives/colleagues.

You’re welcome.

So to anyone who has ever commented – thank you.

It’s been amazing, entertaining and valuable.

I do not take it for granted how much time you gave me and I’m grateful for it.

It’s been so good to have daily contact with old and new friends and clients and long may that continue. But for now, I’m going to shout into a void … and while I know the main motivation for most people who came here was just to read the comments, I hope you still turn up.

Better yet. I hope some of the stuff I write still has some use.

Maybe I’ll change my mind at some point. Maybe I just need a mental health break – given all the stuff going on in the world is adding to the ‘fuck it’ attitude permeating my brain at the moment. But right now, it will be nice to just write shit and not have to worry who it has triggered, hahaha.

So with that, I’ll speak to you later.

In the flesh. Or via zoom. Just not via weird comments that I often don’t see till days later, ha.

And to help you get used to this new chapter I’m going away with work for a few days so there’ll be no posts till Monday. Think of it this way … if you can get used to not being able to slag me off for having “another holiday“ [your words, not mine] then you can get used to talking to me in person, not via comments.