Anonymous Abuse

[wildsweetone]

WTF is this?

I received this anonymous e-mail from a Litster today:

So what is your beef with Man Ray. You used to be a reader, a commenter,
mentioner in new poem reviewer. As a new poems reviewer, commenter, fellow
poet, threadmaker and contribtor, commenter, maintaing personal bias is out of
place. Your absence is noticed my many. I bring it to your attention for the
sole reason that it looks poorly on you. If your comments and feedback are not
laudatory, I would rather (as a fellow reviewer) see them in his poems so that
we all can have your perspective. Thank you.

---------
What the hell is this? It's my choice to make a comment or mention someone's poem in my review. It's nothing personal if someone isn't mentioned or if I haven't left a comment.

Whoever wrote this has a serious problem (and poor spelling as well)

well, goodness me, you mean to say you missed out on commenting on somebody's poem? shame on you vampiredust! i hope you make good mention of them next time. (in whatever way you see fit ).

 

[TheRainMan]

well, goodness me, you mean to say you missed out on commenting on somebody's poem? shame on you vampiredust! i hope you make good mention of them next time. (in whatever way you see fit ).

i see i'm not the only smart ass around here.

 

[wildsweetone]

i see i'm not the only smart ass around here.

yeah but i can blame mine on red wine. today at least.

 

[TheRainMan]

yeah but i can blame mine on red wine. today at least.

me too.

what a surprise, eh?

 

[wildsweetone]

me too.

what a surprise, eh?

'splains a lot, fer sure.

 

[MyNecroticSnail]

ah . . . more conspiracy theories . . .

this time, i just know there's a grassy knoll involved.


is this about ManRay's poem "Peacetroopers?" . . . poetically, that is one really bad poem, IMO.

just asking, not that i care -- how does a poem get an H with the voting off?

if i had to guess, i'm with Tzara. it's a conspiracy of one . . . and that multi-personed person votes 5.

i can imagine them beating their feet from computer to computer, coffeehouse to library, leaving votes and anon comments . . .

listen to Tzara, Christian. he's a very smart man. ignore it, and smile.

I gave it a 75! It thought it was a good joke. A poem from a chickenhawk. Way to go fans of Man Ray, an H with the voting turned off, anonomous letters from the fan base, I see a new set of rising stars on the top list. Love it.

 

[TheRainMan]

I gave it a 75! It thought it was a good joke. A poem from a chickenhawk. Way to go fans of Man Ray, an H with the voting turned off, anonomous letters from the fan base, I see a new set of rising stars on the top list. Love it.

i don't think the poem was meant as a joke.

 

[champagne1982]

I gave it a 75! It thought it was a good joke. A poem from a chickenhawk. Way to go fans of Man Ray, an H with the voting turned off, anonomous letters from the fan base, I see a new set of rising stars on the top list. Love it.

If not for the cross leading me to think of the atheists and foxhole connection, that poem would have been a solid 25 to 50% on the thermometer scale. It's not that good, even if it is intended to be funny. ManRay's not talkin' in the comments though, unless they're all his alts, so who can say what "his vision" is?

 

[TheRainMan]

. . . It's not that good . . .

it's just a mess of gerunds and adjectives and big words used unnecessarily and to no good effect.

 

[MyNecroticSnail]

it's just a mess of gerunds and adjectives and big words used unnecessarily and to no good effect.

It wasn't funny? I thought it was a joke that just went on a little too long. I'll have to consult with my alt, ParrotDee.

 

[Cub4ucme]

We all receive emails that come from dysfunctional or desperate people with strange agendas.

Posting the email says more about you than anything.

It would have been better to ignore it than to find a stage
for it.

In thruth, I don't agree with most of your opinions regarding poetry
but, I repspect them as your opinion. What I don't respect is treating
childish behaviour with a childish response to it.

andy

 

[GuiltyPleasure]

I think the anonymous e-mails need to be ignored but the comments, if left, are there for them to go back and admire. Sad really. I just had one such missive left. how odd is that

How odd is that
11/18/06 By: Anonymous
1. The voting is disabled. 2. I read at least two less than laudatory comments. Where did they go! I guess this poet reserves the right to have it both ways!


I am now deleting ALL unidentified comments as soon as I find them, if this gets tedious I'll turn off comments. I've already disabled the votes option.

I stress ALL comments because I have had some favourable comments left anonymously but because the person was anonymous the comments are, and will be, deleted.

 

[WickedEve]

I am now deleting ALL unidentified comments as soon as I find them, if this gets tedious I'll turn off comments. I've already disabled the votes option.

Go to your member control panel, click on main, then options, and disable anon comments.

 

[Tzara]

Everyone reacts differently to anonymous comments. I personally don't mind them, so long as they don't come across as disturbed. I don't remember ever receiving any that struck me as being disturbed, but I know others have. Maria did, I know (or maybe it was NJ?). I've read some of these and empathize with those kind of remarks being deleted.

On the other hand, people who aren't members of L. can only leave anonymous comments. I frankly doubt that accounts for many of the anonymous comments, but it might account for some. I, like others, assume that most of the anonymous comments come from people who are afraid to identify themselves with a (usually) negative comment. Cowardly? Maybe. Do they fear retribution? Probably. Does it matter to me? No.

For my own part, people are always welcome to say whatever they want to say about my work, either with attribution or without, though I much prefer attribution, as that at least implies the possibility of dialogue on the comment. That goes for voting as well--vote me zeros if you want, for whatever reason. I don't care. I find the intrigues funny. I actually had a poem (well, an alt's poem) at number one on the top list for probably fifteen minutes or so. It is just happenstance I saw it, as I think I have looked at the top list four times.

We writers are sensitive and often jealous. Writing is, for those of us trying to get better at it, a lot of work, and work in which your progress is always in doubt. Many of us (I hate this phrase, but it seems appropriate) "bare our souls" writing, or at least expose ourselves to ridicule. Hence, I think, all the emotion.

It helps when we're civil about it. And logical. It's OK to say "I didn't like this" so long as you say why. Similarly, we should all strive not to say "I really liked this" without saying why. To do otherwise appears to be meretricious.

That there always will be people who unduly praise friends or slam enemies (or even people with high scores) is just life. The best an open system can do is allow you the opportunity of offering what you think of as honest feedback. A real (i.e., serious) writer will appreciate that. One who isn't serious will not and will likely say so.

And for you who disagree, please go here and vote me down. Leave me rude comments. I actually do find that funny, though I'm sure you don't believe me.