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 Greetings! You are reading an article from The Mudville Gazette. To reach the front page, with all the latest news and views, click the logo above or "main" below. Thanks for stopping by! June 3, 2003 WHY DON'T I DO THIS?By GreyhawkI've seen lots of rules to make your Blog popular. Here's a few more. I personally don't follow them all. So if you do these things will hundreds of other bloggers link you? Yes. Virtually every Blog out there will link you. Will thousands flock to your site? Yes. I've seen it happen. So why doesn't everybody do it? Because there's only one ScrappleFace. Congratulations Scott. Posted by Greyhawk / June 3, 2003 3:25 PM | Permalink 22 Comments |
November 26, 2010America@war [Greyhawk]
I think anyone who's ever pondered the "comment" option - once only available on blogs and bulletin boards, now ubiquitous on almost any web site - will appreciate this:
The so-called faculty of writing is not so much a faculty of writing as it is a faculty of thinking. When a man says, "I have an idea but I can't express it"; that man hasn't an idea but merely a vague feeling. If a man has a feeling of that kind, and will sit down for a half an hour and persistently try to put into writing what he feels, the probabilities are at least 90 percent that he will either be able to record it, or else realize that he has no idea at all. In either case, he will do himself a benefit. That's wisdom from the past, captured for posterity at the US Naval Institute, shared via the web on the institute's 137th anniversary. From their about page:
"The Naval Institute has three core activities," among them, History and Preservation: The Naval Institute also has recently introduced Americans at War, a living history of Americans at war in their own words and from their own experiences. These 90-second vignettes convey powerful stories of inspiration, pride, and patriotism. Take a look at the collection, and you'll see it's not limited to accounts from those who served on ships at sea, members of the other branches are well-represented. I'm fortunate to have met USNI's Mary Ripley, she's responsible for the institute's oral history program (and she's the daughter of the late John Ripley, whose story is told here). She also deserves much credit for their blog. ("We're not the Navy nor any government agency. Blog and comment freely.") We met at a milblog conference - Mary knew (and I would come to realize) that milbloggers are the 21st-century version of exactly what the US Naval Institute is all about. Once that light bulb came on in my head, I mentioned a vague idea for a project to her - milblogs as the 21st century oral history that they are. "Put that in writing," she said (of course - see first paragraph above!) - and here's part of the result. Shortly after the first tent was pitched by the American military in Iraq a wire was connected to a computer therein, and the internet was available to a generation of Americans at war - many of whom had grown up online. From that point on, at any given moment, somewhere in Iraq a Soldier, Sailor, Airman or Marine was at a keyboard sharing the events of his or her day with the folks back home. While most would simply fire off an email, others took advantage of the (then) relatively new online blogging platforms to post their thoughts and experiences for the entire world to see. The milblog was born - and from that moment to this stories detailing everything from the most mundane aspects of camp life to intense combat action (often described within hours of the event) have been available on the web... And et cetera - but since you're reading this on a milblog, you probably knew that. And you know that milblogs aren't just blogs written by troops at war, that many friends, family members, and supporters likewise documented their story of America at war online in near-real time, as those stories developed. The diversity in membership of that group is broad, the one thing we all have in common is the impulse to make sense of the seemingly senseless, and communicate the tale - for each of us that impulse was strong enough to overcome whatever barriers prevent the vast majority of people from doing the same. Everyone at some point has some vague idea they believe should be shared - we were the people who, from some combination of internal and external urging, found and spent those many half hours persistently trying to write it down. But where will all that be in another 137 years? Or five or ten, for that matter. That's something I've asked myself since at least 2004 - when I wrote this:
Membership in the ghost battalion has grown in the years since, and an ever growing majority of those abandoned-but-still-standing sites are vanishing. Have you checked out Lt Smash's site lately? How about Sgt Hook's? If you're a long-time milblog reader you know the first widely-read milblog from Operation Iraq Freedom and the first widely-read milblog from Afghanistan are both gone from the web. If you're a relative newcomer to this world you may never even have heard of them - or the dozens upon dozens of others who carried forth the standard they set down. If you have a vague notion that something should be done about that, (a notion I've heard expressed more than once...) then you and I and the good folks at the US Naval Institute are in agreement. Preserving the history documented by the milbloggers is just one of the goals of the milblog project, the once-vague idea that we're now making real. And it's a big idea, if I say so myself - too big to explain in one simple blog post, so stand by for more. Likewise, it's too big a task to be accomplished by just one person. So if you're a milblogger (and exactly what is a milblogger? is a topic for much further discussion on its own) I'm asking for your help. All I'll really need is just a little bit (maybe just one or two of those half hours...) of your time, and your willingness to tell the tale. We've already made history, it's time to save it. (More to follow...) Posted 4:02 PM | Permalink |
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The Mudville Gazette is the on-line voice of an American warrior and his wife who stands by him. They prefer to see peaceful change render force of arms unnecessary. Until that day they stand fast with those who struggle for freedom, strike for reason, and pray for a better tomorrow.
 
 
 Furthermore, I will occasionally use satire or parody herein. The bottom line: it's my house. I like having visitors to my house. I hope you are entertained. I fight for your right to free speech, and am thrilled when you exercise said rights here. Comments and e-mails are welcome, but all such communication is to be assumed to be 1)the original work of any who initiate said communication and 2)the property of the Mudville Gazette, with free use granted thereto for publication in electronic or written form. If you do NOT wish to have your message posted, write "CONFIDENTIAL" in the subject line of your email. Original content copyright © 2003 - 2011 by Greyhawk. Fair, not-for-profit use of said material by others is encouraged, as long as acknowledgement and credit is given, to include the url of the original source post. Other arrangements can be made as needed. Contact: greyhawk at mudvillegazette dot com  Tending Distant Far from hearth and home, watching What tales we'll tell When things grim Some distant sunset, vision fading Saluting fallen friends whose names - Greyhawk, Baghdad, December 2004 |
Thanks Greyhawk.
Good thoughts and generally true, however....
I find an increasing number of the "Big Names" link to the same big stories, list a few thoughts and move on to the next big story, resulting in degree of somewhat sameness. I look for sites with original content, be it satire like Mr. Ott, capricious stories like Lileks, or good blogs of foreign origin like Tim Blair to get a wider view of things.
I can read the news on CNN myself.
1. Gotta have some fun and games.
2. Why, InstaPundit and The Command Center do that best. Why not cover what interests you?
3. Easy to say, hard to do when one is dead tired from a bad day at work and pissed at the world. Sides, ScrappleFace does it better anyway.
4. One of my favorite blogs is Misha's and he is NOT G rated. neither am I, that be blogging pablum.
5. See 4.
6. Oh why not get a good discussion going? It's fun.
And who cared about getting linked by hundreds of other bloggers? If my friends can read my journal, I'm happy cause it saves me writing a ton of emails.
1. Content is really what it's all about for me.
2. So many people cover the big stuff. Some do it really well, some not so well. There are more interesting things out there. I like the more peculiar stuff myself.
3. I like humor. It's my personality, so I don't have to fake it. I think a lot of bloggers have a persona they take on, sometimes it's obvious.
4. I'm not "G" rated, but I try not to go over the top on everything.
5. So far I've been lucky. I like comments, but if it becomes a general melee of expletives, trolls and personal attacks, I'll pull the plug. Who needs the grief. Life's too short.
6. I comment. What the hell, interaction is good.
I'm never going to be instapundit. It's not what I do. He's good at it. I'm never going to be Eugene Volokh. He's good at it, and I have no interest in trying to better him. I couldn't. I think most bloggers find a unique voice that is their own, without trying too hard. For me, this is fun. If it becomes too political, too much of a boys club or I stop having fun, I'll reconsider doing it. So far, I'm enjoying the hell out of it. Sorry I went on so long in your comments, my apologies.
Congratulations Scott! Scrappleface is my homepage! Keep up the good work! I enjoy my daily chuckle, I get from your site!
well Scott you are delivering the big 100,000, well dear you have just joined all the moms who too have delivered. (lot of hard work, up late,heart burn, being kicked around, etc. etc. nice to have you with us, you definitely add class)
Congratulations on the success of a very clever idea!
I didn't even know what a 'blog' was until I clicked on a link to Scrappleface on the Wall Street Journal's "Best of the Web" page. Now I have to read both, and more often yours.
Good luck
Scott,
Keep up the good work. and I for one hope you get filthy rich because of it.
Scott. Congratulations on the "million man/woman" to visit mark!
Your insight, brilliance and concern for keeping the Scrapple house clean is appreciated and applauded by this Classy, sassy Cat!
Aside of all the BRILLIANT "news stories" your courteousness in responding to me when I've e-mailed you about a matter or 2 or 3 or, or , or. means alot.
I'm with Mike S---I hope the BIG bucks come in for you because of Scrappleface!
I look forward to you and Tom Ridge resolving the "security" issues so the "interlopers" can be found out and hauled off to Guantanamo bay! HA
God bless you AND your family, Scott!
LFC (u 2 b)
Scott,
Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Your blog opened the door for myself and I'm sure others as well.
God bless you and all that you set your hand to.
Scott:
Like ILIA, I didn't really know what a blog was until I stumbled onto ScrappleFace. Now I and several of my demented personalities consider it home and treasure both your stories and having the privilege of meeting your posters, who are a great bunch of people. :)
Congratulations on your millionth visit!
To the tune of "Rubber Ducky"
ScrappleFace - you're the best
You're my pick of all the rest -
Scott Ott - we're awfully fond of you...
Doo - dah -doo doo doo..
ScrappleFace - you're the one
You make blogging lots of fun
Scott Ott - we're all awfully fond of you!
[Refrain]
Every day I can
Feel that shake in my tummy
When I
Read your stories 'bout
Clinton, Kerry, or Rummy...
Doo - dah -doo doo doo..
ScrappleFace - with 1 million posts
You don't have to brag or boast.
Hope you know that we're awfully fond of you...
Congratulations Mr. Ott.
May you have at least 10 million more.
I know every time I need a laugh, I can come to Scrappleface.
Scott Ott, Congratulations on your first million. BTW, what's an average pay-pal donation? I'm considering cancelling my cable subscription :)
from my original post 6/2:
Ode to Ott
Twas back in November
I think, don’t remember
When I heard about an e-petition
It was a plea to the Hollywood left
Whose rantings and ravings were deft
To shut up as an act of contrition
There I found a link
One of many I think
To a satirical humourous site
I laughed myself silly
At the articles on Slick Willie
And knew that this guy was alright
The stories were so funny
Especially the quotes from Rummy
That put Scrappleface in the Post!
I started reading the comments
Most Smart but some dense
Yet all with respect to the Host.
So with one million hits
To a site that’s just (Edit)
That points out the numerous gaffes
In politics and technolgy
Business and theology
You da man, Scott! Thanks for the laughs!
Day after day, Scott, you make my day -- and give me something to look forward to.
It sure feels good to laugh. Thanks a million to you and the likes of "Greyhawk"
Congrats! Even if you did delete my joke about Cheetos (I'm sure you LYAO before you did) I think your stories are amazingly on the mark. The humor is sick, twisted, and shows everything wrong with being conservative. So keep it up!
Happy Birthday Scott Ott! I chewied on my mousie-thing.
Bravo, dawg.
Scott- thanks for making everyone think! But most importantly- congratulations on making most of the people here LAUGH!!!!! I especially appreciate the satire and sarcasm.... as my college roommate always told me, "everyone likes a piece of ....., but nobody like a smart ...!!!"
Keep on hurdling!! (or whatever)
H.o.D.
Best to you and yours Scott. You have given us a great gift in Scrappleface (and many laughs)! Congrats on a million! Here's to the next million!
Huge congrats! Scrappleface is the first thing I read every day. The absolute best!
Huge congrats! Scrappleface is the first thing I read every day. The absolute best!
Who?