Archive for July, 2015

On Gawker and Journalistic Responsibility…

Posted in Grumblings with tags , , , , on July 18, 2015 by chemiclord

I’m not keen on going into details, mostly because anyone who doesn’t know shouldn’t be informed on the specifics (and I’ll get to why later) and anyone else doesn’t need a recap.

But the general thrust is that Gawker media ran an article that they shouldn’t have, and was forced to retract it after severe blowback by the community at large, despite the union’s protest that such unilateral action should not be accepted.  There is a process, they say, and they can’t let the business side of things subvert that process, even if the article isn’t deemed appropriate.

On one hand, I understand that.  Once you say, “Well… okay…” and give in without a fight, that sets a precedent.  Now your business-side can yank anything they feel hurts the bottom line and say, “Well, you let us do it with this article…” and once you let executives do that, it really kills the journalistic integrity that is vital for a publication to be given any weight in the public eye.

But there is another side that Internet reporting is finally starting to discover now that they’ve won the war with the old guard of media; journalistic responsibility.

Journalism has a responsibility not only to report the truth, but also to report the relevant.  There was absolutely nothing relevant about the article that was removed.  It didn’t expose any blatant hypocrisy.  It didn’t show a dark side that no one realized existed.  It was a hit piece, designed to do damage to a rival website, and nothing more.

Make no mistake, the old guard failed their responsibility quite often, and so this is hardly a new conundrum.  Back when the war for journalism was still being fought, the Internet reporting community felt only one question truly mattered; “Is it true?”  And when you’re fighting a pretty obviously compromised and corrupted fourth estate, that’s really the only question that needed to matter.

But now, as the bulk of Americans (and possibly the world) are now turning to Internet reporting like Gawker as their primary source of information… “is it true” isn’t enough on its own.  Hopefully, this is a lesson Gawker has learned, and other information centers on the Internet will learn through this example.

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Drive-Thru Etiquette…

Posted in Grumblings with tags , , on July 16, 2015 by chemiclord

I’ve been loathe to use this blog as a personal sounding board, wanting it to remain quasi-professional… but after years of either working in the service industry or watching others making use of those services, I’ve kinda put together a personal list for Drive-Thru Etiquette that I’m finally going to share with the greater world.

1) If you don’t know what you want, please either pull to the side or pull around rather than hem and haw for several minutes while the line grows behind you.  Figure out what you want, then pull up to order.

2) “I want the special” likely isn’t sufficient information for your server.  Please elaborate rather than ask the poor sot to guess.

3) If you are ordering for more than four people, please go inside rather than hold up the line for ten minutes or more just because you are too lazy to get out of your car.

4) Don’t say, “It doesn’t matter” when you’re given a question.  The people trying to serve you aren’t paid nearly enough to try and figure out what you’d like more.  I know it’s hard to think, but give a shot.

5) When a server greets you (either in person or at a speaker), the proper response isn’t silence.

6) Don’t change or add to your order at the payment window.  You were likely given no fewer than three opportunities to change your mind before you even pulled up.  And especially don’t try to change your order after you’ve paid.

7) You’re not being slick or smart asking for a water after you’ve paid and gotten your food.  If the company charges for water, they aren’t gonna give you a complimentary one just because they don’t want to ring you up again.  Chances are, you’re just getting free water they are more than willing to give as it is.  You just look like a tool.  Stop.

8) If you can’t read the menu board… go home, get your glasses, then come back.  I don’t want to share the road with you if you are so damn blind that you can’t read.

I think if we strive to follow these simple rules, that the process of getting what you’re looking for will be smoother and more enjoyable for you, the servers, and most importantly the people waiting behind your stupid ass.

Thank you.

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First Draft for The Fire Fox

Posted in Updates with tags , , on July 6, 2015 by chemiclord

Whelp, after some silence and grumblings about non-related things, time to make a work related announcement.

The first draft of Endgames book #3, “The Fire Fox” has been completed.  Now to the editing and revision process with the hope of a late August or early September release.

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