"To Blog, Or Not To Blog..."

I had someone the other day really questioning the validity of blogs. I could sympathize. Starting this one was no small feat for me. The fact that blogs are springing up all over the internet in droves and actually have been for many years (I am, as usual, behind the curve) says something. Of my own friends or acquaintances there is one doing a blog on writing, another on hoarding, one on raising a child with diabetes and yet another on battling depression.  There is a blog on Being A Manly Man, a blog on Living Like Atticus Finch, another on how to build birdhouses, and so on.  I can say with some level of confidence that if you can think up a topic there is probably a blog for it from somewhere in the world.

Those of you that have studied the creative arts (or psychology) in any capacity will be familiar with the concept of a Collective Consciousness, briefly described as “the condition of an individual within the whole of society and how that individual views themself as part of any given group”.  The knowledge one has of oneself (strengths, weaknesses, etc.) is predicated on what one can LEARN about oneself, through social interaction, spirituality and self-study (to name a few). Carl Jung took the concept a step further with his discussions on Collective UNconciousness which is briefly described as “a part of the unconscious mind incorporating patterns of memories, instincts, and experiences common to all mankind." The unconscious mind is a powerful thing and the notion that all of us are operating at some level on a unified plane of thought is provocative.  

What the hell does all of this have to do with blogs? Well…I doubt I’m the first person to have the idea that the internet is becoming, in many ways, a living manifestation of our collective UNconsciousness.  It is a wellspring of human knowledge, thoughts, ideas, concepts, studies, theories and dreams. Social media allows us to stake a claim to a particular tribe or social group (friends/family on Facebook, professional contacts on LinkedIN, celebrities and more on Twitter). But this is not enough.  Our collective consciousness is not satisfied. We as individuals still end up feeling…well, unheard. Hence the creation of blogs which are, if nothing else, an attempt by the individual to say “I am here, I have a unique identity and I want to share it with you so that maybe I will get to see your unique identity as well.”

Could it all also just be about people being afraid and feeling lonely? You bet. Fear is a five knuckled fist and loneliness a hand at your throat. But the Information Age is useless without the informed. We are adrift these days in a sea of information and all these blogs are like flares across the sky reminding us that we are not at sea alone and that our fears are just a few paragraphs away from being banished, if only for a little while.