High Risk Blogging

Blog Topics that Matter but are Not Fun to Read and Why You Should Write Them Anyway

Yesterday, I published a blog about Egypt’s culling of pigs from the farms and neighborhoods of poor Coptic Christians who are a significant but disadvantaged minority. I used a Times Online UK source story which I clearly cited.

Of course, I edited the fussy little article repeatedly to correct the errors that result from writing in a hurry, from the heart, and with other conflicts in the back of one’s mind. Then, I cleaned it up again and checked behind it’s ears by adding the UK correspondent’s name into the block text of his verbatim quote.

Sigh, and of course my blog had to do with the most unappealing mashup of issues; swine flu, Egyptian politics, disadvantaged minorities living in poverty, pigs.

Good grief–swine!! Who would want to read my gentle plea for the humble neighbors in and around Cairo. Worse yet, my own respect for the complexities of the decision made by the Minister of Health and President Mubarak was obvious.

It really was a mere short commentary on the ironic impact of a potential super strain which has had rather unforeseen effects on economic and political events. Inasmuch as I’ve drawn attention to this, I’m satisfied that I did an adequate job.

Ten to fifteen years ago I was a contributor to a moderated list for international peer review related to Emerging Diseases. Dozens of daily posts from around the world tracked field reports and research. Events or trends related to news and chatter of emerging disease was global, expert and self moderated.

While the bulletin board itself appeared in what would now seem like a vintage html viewer, the dynamic of realtime posts on both research and outbreaks was unrestrained and honest in a way that we may have left in that decade.

From a writer’s perch it was fascinating and real, not piped-in science.

What an awakening today–to confirm a deafening lack of stats on that particular blogpost despite posting the link to newsvine, twice to twitter, and in the myspace blog.

A tree in the forest could have gotten more hits from a mosquito.

This latest side story on public policy and international emerging disease as served up by me with quotes, citations, and lipstick~~my little shout in the wilderness ~virtually ignored. Wow.

Of course, this blog of which I speak (how weird is that, linguists!) called~ Public Health — WHO’s the Parent~is not some scientifically sexy article. This is exactly what I’m trying to say.

It is, rather, a tasteful article about a tasteless subject, unless you happen to love ham, or bacon, or food in general if you are starving. Not funny. So not funny but I bet that I made you laugh?

As access to information is increasingly managed in a political world, it is essential that there be an open arena. I may feel like the entertainment in a gladiator event, but what is life without the passion to speak.

It is no coincidence that we refer to ideas on the internet going “viral.” If my blog on swine flu was any barometer, we are far from a pandemic of interest.

If you are reading THIS blog, thank you!
Please bookmark or blogroll the page and read it again!
~etta

30APR09
(c) Etta B Dickerson 2009