ten percent

TEN PERCENT
Before we start today, two things. First, I have a guest article for tomorrow. I liked it, it covered an area I have no aptitude or much knowledge in. And the author was kind enough to politely answer the stupid questions I had about it. Second, I really liked the last article by http://thearchdruidreport.blogspot.com/ . His is one of the few talents I look up to and try to emulate. As I said of his book, even if I don't necessarily agree with the long descent theory ( not that I think he is wrong and I am right but mainly because I'm extra paranoid and must look through the pessimistic lens of sudden collapse ), I liked it so much it is in my top ten list of books on survivalism.
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Ten percent. Ten percent of any group will contain all of the achievers ( actually it is most likely less than that, I think you have to do the 80/20 rule and then take twenty percent of that twenty percent or something like that but my brain hurts today because I ate an abnormally large protein rich breakfast and would prefer to nap instead of think ), and ten percent of any group are the trouble makers ( again, probably lower but just go with it ). That ten percent might influence the 80% that makes up the herd that follows the lead of the minority which makes the generalisation about the group. Luckily, in the case of the Internet, the ten percent that took the lead act positively. Culturally, the vast majority of Net users are decent and unselfish and generally follow a Libertarian code of conduct. Well, at least to start with. I don't know if we have already seen the start of that counter trend. The teeny boppers bringing the cell phone talking in the theatre habit to U-Tube and the like. I could be wrong, perhaps it has always been like that and I'm not seeing something. It's possible, I've always primarily used the Internet for business.
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Of course, you all know what started this article- the asshat trolls that immediately polluted the comments section. Almost every day, I plead with you to buy my crap. And you all do a fine job supporting Bison. I can't bitch about the paycheck, especially with as few readers as I have. But you don't have to pay a damn thing to be a reader. Everything is free. No pop up ads, even. I give you the product, and if you are satisfied you then pay me in one form or another. It's on the honor system and the majority of you don't abuse that. I am grateful for the support, and for the exemplary conduct. What I can't figure out is why some people seem to feel they have to ruin the whole thing. You got your free product, it didn't cost you anything, so why do you feel you have to try to ruin it? It would be the same as if you got a free cup of lemonade on a very hot day and then pissed in the pitcher so no one else could have a drink.
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Does the Tragedy Of The Commons now apply to the Internet? Is the social contract breaking down? It would be a shame, since the model so far has been full of benefits. Dare I say it has worked better that the free market system? Maybe it hasn't. Before special interest groups started parasiting the system ( governments, banks, Unions, etc ) the free market worked wonderfully. Is the Internet headed the same direction? Or has a extreme minority caused the illusion of breakdown? One guy could be spoiling the whole thing. Thinking it is a competitor seems simplistic. One doesn't get the feel of evil from them, for one thing. Could it be someone on a religious crusade? This seems more likely. However I offended our Jesus Freak, course language, lack of religious guidance, whatever, he feels he has been chosen by God to shut me down. It is not up to each reader what they should be exposed to, it is up to our One True Way Of Baby Jesus disciple to pick for you what is proper. They tried that in Nazi Germany too by burning impure books. Bush Junior thought he was picked by God himself to purify the world by removing Muslims. So torture was okay.
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I'll be completely honest with you here. Shutting down the comments section worked wonderfully at starting Bison's end. I lost twenty five percent readership as a result. I didn't actually check the numbers until after I restarted the comments. How the heck did people know to start reading again? That doesn't mean I'll keep the comments if abuse continues. I've lost lots of readers before. I just keep plugging away and I get the numbers back eventually. All of this keeps going through my head, as it does relate to society in general and our breakdown in particular. Which ten percent ( good or evil ) does the herd follow? Why? I know it shows a breakdown of order that goes along with all economic collapses. I get that part. But it seems the Internet was a force of good in a sea of evil for a time. Information wanting to be free was a powerful force freeing the minds of the masses. Perhaps that is what unleashed the backlash. The elites can't have the masses either thinking for themselves or working for themselves. So who is poisoning my well? CIA paid trolls ( I don't delude myself into thinking I'm anything other than one in a long list )? This would fit in with the current mode of taxpayer funded oppression. If true, I'm just like a militia group. Infiltrated by The Man to sow discord and distrust.
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Perhaps this is a good thing. If I continue to allow the Information Czar trolls to try to undermine my readers they won't try any wet work against me like arranging a bicycle "accident". Perhaps I shouldn't moderate comments after all. See how I did that? I raised all kinds of hard questions about social breakdown and social behavior contracts and when I couldn't come up with an answer I went to the defacto conspiracy theory. Told you I ate too much prior to this.
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