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1. 1 On April 20th, 2024, memer said:

   Dammit, first idiot in the pool again.

   Y’know, I’ve generally ducked the “racism is white people’s problem, not ours” line I hear from some black folk from time to time. Doesn’t intuitively make sense to me and timingwise, I guess I’ve never been in the mood to think hard about it whenever it came up.

   But re the blogosphere, I’m thinkin now that attitude’s prolly fitting here. That is, that it’s not our problem. At least not at this stage. Racism obviously gets ugly when it affects someone’s ability to earn a living or excercise the same freedoms accorded anyone else. When I can’t earn a buck cuz of some racial discrimination, then I got a (serious) problem — and so will Whitey if it continues (as memer cracks his knuckles). No tales out of school there, right?

   But here in blogland, who cares, really? Monolinkage in the blogosphere is whitey’s problem, isn’t it? How does it really affect us in an everyday, practical, direct way? It’s more a symbolic thing, it seems — not that there’s anything wrong with that. In any event, I should think most of today’s online black folk would be too proud to run around complaining aloud about lack of linkage (from Whites).

   Now when it comes to real world benefits, like, say, being invited to real world conferences where there’s an opportunity to make concrete impact and such, perhaps that’s when it counts. Mebbe if/when the blogverse is fully monetized, when this linking thing can really affect what i can earn, mebbe that’s when you’ll hear more woe-tales from the darkside.

   I have a dream, that one day even blogistan, a state sweltering with the heat of link-injustice, sweltering with the heat of minority depression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice… and so on and so forth. Yes, well, are we there yet?

2. 2 On April 20th, 2024, fp said:

   I’m thinking it’s not about cross links, cross posts, and blogrolls. What it might be about is getting unconscious. Here in Madison our black community is largely separate from our white community. And the Mexicans are separate as are the Hmong. The kids come together in the public schools, but the parents don’t see each other. For years Madison’s south side fed Central High School. Central was a black school and the south side was an example of de facto segregation.

   On the net, anybody could be a dog, so these boundaries may never be drawn. But if we don’t pay attention to erasing them in real space, then we’re going to enforce a digital divide that prevents people from sharing the net. Each community has its own challenges as far as sharing power and caring for everybody in a balanced, considerate way.

   It’s about who’s your neighbor I think.

3. 3 On April 21st, 2024, memer said:

   Ermm…what is about what, again? I was just trying to answer your question re why there doesn’t seem to be more black blogs (consistently) up in arms about lack of linkage from white blogs. Me, I’m no representative. And contrary to what was implied at Jeneane’s, this isn’t even a sore topic for ME, necessarily.

   But am I picking up another thread here? Reading what you’ve posted at J’s and Shelley’s, it occurred to me that perhaps you’re suggesting that compartmentalization of protesting is a good idea. That women push for women’s rights and the black folk stick to pushin for “black” rights? Stuff like that?

   The point, or rather observation i was making at Jeneane’s was that sometimes I think it behooves a movement to be more inclusive when it can. Sure, it’s great that Shelley is a women’s rights/equality advocate. All for it. It was just a side note to suggest there’s power in numbers, that diversity means more than just adding in one specific segment. Jeneane’s made that point ably I think.

   [another side note, there’s prolly plenty similar grist for the mill in the whole discussion of whether women of color were left out of the feminist movement]

   So Scoble’s IS a valid point, I dare say, to look at where to draw the diversity line. should we START with women first? with whoever’s wheel is squeekiest? are we through when there’s a black dude/chic at the dinner table? a native american? handicapped? can we rest when at last there’s a gay person? asian?

   Alls I’m sayin is sometimes it’s good to champion everybody getting a seat. It was labelled the CIVIL rights movement, not the BLACK rights movement, remember?

4. 4 On April 21st, 2024, bmo said:

   Random disparate thoughts on this:

   I’ve been following this at arms length on JS’s blog and Shelley’s.

   I really do tire of Doc linking to Hugh linking to Seth linking to Doc.

   Still, it wouldn’t stop me from linking to anyone of them. White guys or not.

   Problem is this: if you care about google rank or technorati top 100 position then you’re fucked. You’re into the same ratings game you’re trying to escape.

   Makes me sick to my stomach when I read bloggers salivating at the mention of blogging in the larger media outlets as though there is some sort of validation in this. It reminds me - and memer might get this - of Canadians, or more specifically Torontonians - who wonder what the Americans might be thinking of them, their city. It’s infantile and betrays an insecurity complex of pathological dimension.

   Conferences I don’t get. I really don’t get why anyone would ever go to one. I have to think that these things are some sort of extension of university days gatherings - you know the seminar things. My in-laws live this life. Speaking, attending, networking. Dead weekends. Nascar for intellectuals. Swap-meets. So are there a lot of black faces or women at these things? Geez I think this would have to be a positive sign. We really should be attempting, rather than getting minorities to the table, attempting to wean the chubby wan techies from the conference teat. Guys, get outside. Mow the grass.

   Still, I am stunned that there aren’t more brown and asian faces at these tech things. I was in the air back and forth to SF at the height of the tech boom and on board were a heck of a lot of nonwhites flipping open the laptops, digging into their code. So you’ve got a point, frank, about extending a hand, and making the effort.

   Or, maybe we have to face the fact that conferences are the white male’s hiphop.

   And the diversity thing. Put a bunch of nonwhites on a TV station and you still end up with a babbling bunch of telegenic airheads. There’s no escaping that.

   That is all. Thought dump.

5. 5 On April 21st, 2024, memer said:

   “…conferences are the white male’s hiphop”

   Uh-huh, therrrre it is, right on schedule. I’ve noticed a disturbingly undisturbing pattern of late, that whenever bmo speaks, I get a chubby. He’s music to my ears, the muse to soothe the savage memer. [/fanboi_praise]

   Yup, Toronto DEFINITELY has a weird insecurity about the U.S. It’s embarrassing. And, yes, I can’t understand the constant fiending over them Blech-100 lists either. Fuck em if they can’t give a link.

6. 6 On April 21st, 2024, bmo said:

   I should have said rap, probably more acccurate, but you get the drift. I’ve often wondered if there are any rappers - white or black - using PowerPoint in the clubs. I might attend a conference if a techie or presenter of any sort got into a rhythmn or rhyme thing.

7. 7 On April 21st, 2024, bmo said:

   Tupac Searls. Biggie Winer.

8. 8 On April 21st, 2024, bmo said:

   Fat Scobe. Ludacris Locke. Wu-Tang Frank.

9. 9 On April 21st, 2024, madame l. said:

   hey, is he talking about me? he, he, he, uhhhh.

10. 10 On April 21st, 2024, fp said:

    Notorious BMO

11. 11 On April 21st, 2024, fp said:

    Queen Jeneane
    (Shelley of) Rage
    Leslie Lyte

12. 12 On April 21st, 2024, bmo said:

    Snoop Doc is better than Tupac Searls. Tupac Cubeta. Eminesther. LL Cool Jay. P. Digby. MC Kombinat.

13. 13 On April 21st, 2024, bmo said:

    Lil Ken

14. 14 On April 21st, 2024, memer said:

    *ding! ding!* and the golden mic goes to Frank.

    Next round: LL Cool Jeneane vs. Queen Shelley.

15. 15 On April 21st, 2024, memer said:

    Whoop. Too slow.

16. 16 On April 21st, 2024, bmo said:

    Ja Ito? DJ Jazzy Seth. Kool Moe Dean. DJ Dangermousemusings.

17. 17 On April 21st, 2024, bmo said:

    Ice Cubeta is better than Tupac Cubeta.

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