Lies, Damned Lies, and Blogging

Polly is in a state of flux. Re-evaluating my place in blog world you might say.

There is a lot going on in the world that I would love to blog on. For starters, Thank God the ACLU doesn't have any pull in Britain. How did British authorities ascertain imminent terrorist attacks via air planes? Wide spread intelligence gathering. Keeping in mind the alleged terrorists were targeting international American flights, I think every U.S. citizen owes a big "Thank you and God Save the Queen" to the diligence and common sense of the British government.

Ah... but I digress. What I wanted to write about was the minor controversy swirling about my blog and the numerous pictures I have posted and the false claims as to my identity. I'm not going to justify anything. Dishonesty and fantasy has been repeatedly implemented on PollyPeoria by its author. My attitude has been, "It's just a blog. It's supposed to be fun. I can post anything that I find amusing and represent myself as anything/one that I believe my twelve devoted readers will find amusing." I really didn't think anyone would take an anonymous blog too seriously. There are upscale, upstanding, responsible, professional blogs out there. This just isn't one of them.

Some of the devoted twelve have e-mailed me to disagree. Since I have come to respect a few of them, I'm reconsidering my attitude, my blogging ethics, and whether or not to remain anonymous. I have to remain anonymous due to work and personal relationships that I hold dear. So the real question is whether or not to remain anonymous or remain at all. Well, whether PollyPeoria should remain at all, that is.

I've underestimated how much I've come to enjoy venting by blog. It has been a healthy experience. I have really come to appreciate what I consider to be blogging's biggest perk: My quirky opinions and my tendency to debate endlessly now only annoy those who choose to read PollyPeoria. Those who choose to be annoyed. I no longer (unknowingly) verbally assault people at bars and cocktail parties. My significant other no longer dreads taking me out in public or to social functions. I have been slow to learn that not everyone enjoys heated political discussions, and some even get their feelings hurt when confronted about their views and beliefs. Imagine that!

I've been a bit surprised as to how strongly some folks feel about the false pics and my fantasy identity. I apologize. I never considered myself a journalist and in my -admittedly- odd world, I didn't think I was being unethical. I figured as long as I wasn't downloading anything artsy, copywrited or trying to make people believe I was seriously Scarlet Johansson, morally I was in the clear. I have attempted to protect my identity, true, but I have also tried to create an identity that makes clear who I am not. Every now and then I will get an e-mail that says something to the effect, "Because of your opinions on ________, everyone at work thinks I'm PollyPeoria and is giving me a hard time. I think PollyPeoria is an idiot and I wish you would post the fact that you- whoever you are, Dumbass- is not _____________." I am sympathetic to those falsely accused of being me. I mean Polly. So, occasionally I have posted a fantasy piece with the purpose of building up my alter identity and also makes it clear that Polly could simply not be George Bush, because George Bush would never mud wrestle. Well, maybe he would, but he would get his ass kicked.

Some folks keep things simple. Back and white. They are who they are and they would never dream of misrepresenting themselves on a blog. Nothing wrong with that, admirable even. I insulted a few of these people by not adhering to the same high standards of transparency. For that, alone, I apologize. Not for being transparent, but because I didn't mean to insult anyone. I simply believe(d?) that it was okay to employ falsehoods on something I never meant to have been taken too seriously.

The problem is that I did have quite a few serious posts that I did want taken seriously. I have blogged on some fairly weighty issues, and certainly didn't want my posts on abortion, gay marriage, or the war in Lebanon to be taken as jokes. I didn't think co-mingling the serious with the silly -meant to misrepresent my identity- as a problem. I thought the divisions between serious and silly were obvious. I have been informed that they weren't.

So Polly is pondering. Even know it all Polly can be wrong. Maybe. I guess. Sorta.