Sunday, May 06, 2007

The Merits of Blogging

My little respite from blogging was extremely restorative. It gave me a chance to do a lot of reflecting on the pros and cons of continuing with Joanne's Journey. The fact that I was on a forced withdrawal from computer access of any kind likely hastened my digital cleansing.

Probably the biggest relief was not having to deal with ridiculous issues like the Shane Doan debacle. Good grief! What were those dough-heads thinking?

Anyway, it was quite pleasant to wake up and let the other bloggers deal with the crazy political antics in Ottawa, which made me reassess why I was even taking on this self-imposed role.

Folks, there is a life out there that doesn't involve politics and it is sweet.

Will I return? Probably.

Articles like those in today's Sun are enticing me. Lorrie Goldstein advises Premier McGuinty to stick to an attitude of not talking down to the special interest groups and various demographics he is trying to impress (Has Dalton Lost His Edge?)

Christina Blizzard has an awesome column this morning - "Wheels Falling Off for Dalton". This will be a very handy item in the upcoming fall election.

Will I be back? Of course.

But right now, the sunshine beckons.


* * * *

Update: Good editorial here. Question Period worse than usual.

14 comments:

Jeff said...

things ain't so sweet for mr. tory. latest problem, 2 words:

Randy Hillier

Joanne (True Blue) said...

Mmm... Should be an interesting election campaign.

RGM said...

I do hope you stick around, J(TB). I've seen too many good female bloggers stop blogging in the past few months, and yours is a voice that I have enjoyed listening to for many months now.

That said, being on holidays and only visiting teh Internetz for brief spurts, I am also enjoying life beyond the blogosphere. Springtime in the Okanagan is divine!

Joanne (True Blue) said...

Thanks, RGM. It's really all about balance, right?

Anonymous said...

Speaking of Randy Hillier, it would appear that the man is a rural seperatist who has called for rural Ontario to seperate from the rest of the province.

I think John Tory is going to have a problem on his hands here.

Anonymous said...

Ditto to what RGM said. Some other sites are too belligerent for my taste, so I too hope you continue with yours.

Joanne (True Blue) said...

Zac, I don't know what John Tory was thinking to approve this one.

Gabby, thanks. I'm going to try to stay away from the partisan sniping and back-stabbing. It takes away from the enjoyment of the discussion, IMHO.

Mac said...

Welcome back, Jo. It's raining in Vancouver (how unusual!) but the dog needed her walk (and so did I). Balance.

Anonymous said...

"I'm going to try to stay away from the partisan sniping and back-stabbing.."

I don't think you're guilty of either. I don't think being partisan, defending one point of view versus another, is wrong, IMO.

It is the way the discussion is carried out, with name-calling and ridicule, that I find objectionable - you know, using silly passé & overused expressions like "drinking the kool-aid" or "wearing tin-foil hats" - YAWN!

I congratulate you for not using those tactics, and hope more bloggers and commenters will follow your example.

Joanne (True Blue) said...

Mac, that's right. I think your wife is a good influence on you in that regard; i.e. not spending too much time on the computer.

at I find objectionable - you know, using silly passé & overused expressions like "drinking the kool-aid" or "wearing tin-foil hats" - YAWN! Gabby, thanks for your continued support. I do have a penchant for "Kyoto Kult", but tinfoil hats and Koolaid are both something I gave up long ago.

Or was it newspaper hats? Remember those?

Anonymous said...

Joanne, please, please, please don't stop your blogging. I visit your site several times a day. You (and others like you) help save my sanity. When I am bombarded by crazy, illogical messages every day through MSM and newspapers, I come here and feel so much better knowing that there are others like me out there! That said, I do understand how you would need a break every now and then - I would miss you if you're gone too long though!

Joanne (True Blue) said...

Barbara - Wow! I sure don't want to be responsible for the decline of your mental health. ;)

I am leaning towards concentrating on quality vs. quantity. For a while there I was trying to cover every breaking news event, which is really not what a blogger does best unless you're a news aggregator like Jack's Newswatch or National Newswatch.

I think a blogger is most effective when lending a different perspective to the news; thus encouraging discussion and new insight for all concerned.

Thanks so much for your support, Barbara. It's because of people like yourself that I am encouraged to continue.

mamie said...

Joanne, may I add my plea to "barbara in winnipeg" that you do continue with your blog as I check in every day even though I don't post often in your comments. I am trying to make up my mind on the merits of the Harper government: I'll admit I'm one of those life long Liberal voters, even one who bought into those 'scary Harper' warnings, but I actually have come around to actually liking many of the things the Harper government is doing. At least, I've become much more interested in looking at both sides of issues and it's been interesting to read your blog and the discussions that go on in the comments. But of course do take some time for summer sun!!

Joanne (True Blue) said...

Thanks so much, Mamie. That is a very gratifying comment because it shows me that I have some 'liberal' readers who are not necessarily just out to trip me up, but instead have a balanced and objective interest in discussing politics.

Please do weigh in more often. Yours is the kind of response that keeps me going.