I struggle with writing about serious subjects. There is a part of me that wants to come out and declare certain things, to say things about current events, or about issues, or whatever. But it never feels that easy. I don't want to say something... wrong?
Like the Kindle issue. I wrote a post about some petty issues I have with the Kindle platform, not because they were big issues or problems or things that seriously turned me away from Kindle, but because they were minor things that I kept coming across and wanted/needed to vent about it. It's just a minor thing, the sort of gripe you might talk about with your friends, but I'm kind of isolated on the other side of the planet from my friends so I don't often get chances to gripe about things. Thus, rants online.
But there are bigger issues with Kindle and Amazon. I allude to them in that post, but don't go into detail. I have started writing a post about those bigger issues, and issues with digital media and ownership, etc. But it's such a serious topic and it's harder to write about for a few reasons. One reason is that if I'm writing about something silly or petty, if I get a few details wrong it doesn't really matter, it won't affect much. I still did a good deal of research into that earlier Kindle post, but in the end it didn't really matter.
But if I'm talking about serious things I want to make sure everything I say is accurate and correct, and so the amount of research needed goes up. I will want to make more points about the subject, and each point needs to be backed by facts, so that level of research can get exponentially bigger.
My Wizards review took effort to research because I didn't want to portray things incorrectly, and because I wanted to include a number of visual elements (screen captures from the film), but that was all easy stuff. I did read a few articles about the movie, but I was doing that anyway, it wasn't difficult. Sometimes fact checking serious subjects is a lot more difficult. And screen-caps took effort in the literal and strict sense of the word, but it wasn't difficult by any means.
The other reason it's harder to write about serious subjects is that it's just more emotional effort. I feel like this is probably self-explanatory, so I'm not really going to expound on it much. But suffice it to say that when life is already difficult, writing about difficult things (either things directly affecting me or not) is that much harder.
Am I a bad person if I don't make a post affirming LGBT+ people's rights, even while said rights are under threat? Am I a bad person if I don't publicly denounce Mega Corporation X? Or Public Figure Y? Is it worse to write about Kindle without addressing the greater issues with the platform (issues that have recently gotten worse) or Amazon as a whole? Is it wrong to avoid writing too much about serious subjects because life is already hard enough as it is, and focusing too much on those things only makes life more stressful?
I try to be a good person. I care about people. I especially care about those who are downtrodden, or those who are different, or "othered" by society. I have always been different, I have felt the pains of a system that wasn't made for people like me. And so I really feel the hurt other people feel when they face similar situations. Also, ya know, I have basic human empathy towards others.
So there is a part of me that wants to do something when I see serious things happening. A part of me wants to address these things. But I want to do it right, and do it to a standard I'm not sure I can consistently put out. So I shy away from the serious subjects. I don't know how I feel about that, though. Obviously I'm conflicted.
I don't know if there's a solution or an answer. If someone came to me with this dilemma I can imagine my response/advice would be something along the lines of "I dunno dude, I guess you just gotta do the best you can and if you're not happy with what you wrote, then set it aside and return to it later." Which, I suppose is what I've done (literally, the first draft of this post was written in January, I believe). I may also offer a few words about having "no obligation to involve one's self in any particular issue," or something to that affect. Which, while true and valid, doesn't exactly clarify the conflict inside me. I know I don't owe the world any particular opinion or thought or whatever. But when I see rights being taken away, I want to do something, but I don't know what I can do. When I see wealth disparity rising, and people getting hurt, and my own self getting hurt by broken systems and broken people, I want to do something, but I'm so limited in what I can do. And so, speaking out is something I can do, but that doesn't make it simple or easy to do, and we could easily loop back to the start of this.
So I guess that, for the moment, this post will probably have to stand as my public statement about the world today, and with that being the case I want to say just a few more words. There are a hundred issues I could address, but I'll simplify it down to this:
Everyone should be allowed to exist and seek their own happiness, whatever that may be, without harming others. Be nice to others.
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