Yupdates

8/31/09: Note: I thought I posted this, like, DAYS ago, and only the recent "Hey Gladys! New post?" alert from Miz made me realize that I hadn't. So here, in its incomplete entirety, is the Post You Didn't See...

Since there seem to be long strings trailing from a few of my recent posts, I figure I'll just toss out a couple of updates.

First things first: Eatmisery's blog is once again in the land of the living!!! Glad to have you back, Miz...I can't imagine losing six years of posts, so I can only guess how terrifying that had to have been for you, finding that message where your blog should have been. (Incidentally, short of printing it or publishing it to your own personal website, the only way to back up a blog is to use Blogger's "export" function, which sends an .xml copy of your stuff. Not ideal, IMHO; I think I'm going to start making a Word file out of this one, just in case.)

In other news, I actually had a reasonably productive conversation on Facebook with the girl who posted the link to that racially-fraught blog. She started out the next day with a status message wondering "why is it that concern for out children is automatically labeled as racism". Needless to say, I called bullshit on THAT line of inquiry, and as the conversation went on, she explained that HER predominant concerns were: 1)the barbecuers were inside the fenced-in playlot area, which--along with being meant for KIDS, not grown people--is heavily posted with signs saying "No alcohol/no open flame"; 2) that the kids playing in the playlot were being engulfed in smoke clouds from the grills; and 3) that the adults were drinking in the playlot (illegal), acting like drunken d-bags, and generally NOT being good examples. She also explained that the park renovation had been paid for with a special tax levy, directly by the residents of that area, and that it seemed unfair that their kids couldn't even play there, due to misbehavior from people who didn't even pay for it. I came back with a reply, agreeing with all those points--but then pointed out that neither the "officer's" quotes from the original blog, nor the responses posted in the comment section, made any mention of ANY of the VALID points. I took up a sequence of five Facebook comments to explain that what I was reading indicated less of a problem with WHAT was happening in the park, and much more concern regarding WHO was in the park.

At this point, one of her other friends--someone I don't know, mercifully--came back with words to the effect of "I DO have a problem with WHO, and I don't care who knows it--at least I'm being honest! Now go ahead and call me ignorant or whatever--I don't care." I replied that I had no plans to call her ANYTHING (well, not out loud--my thoughts are my own) and that we were each entitled to our own opinions, and no harm done. Normally, that would be that--right?

Well, apparently this person didn't get the memo, because she just kept going. "I think I'll take a bunch of MY friends, a grill, and a cooler to THEIR park this weekend. I'm sure NOTHING will happen to me..." As far as I can tell, she's the only one among the people I talk to who is actively celebrating her own narrowmindedness in this way; I do wonder, though, how many agree with her and just say nothing.