Well, time for attempt number two at driving up some meaningful conversation!
Disclaimer #1: This is a Hangout thread.

Attempt number one, (and therefore, my FIRST talking point, which never got off
the ground) can be found here:

http://www.menewsha.com/forum/commun...ramblings.html

In my blog you can also find my writings. Here is my column/discussion thread.

On to today's topic.

What do people want out of the internet? I for one, want a voice. I truly don't care who reads as long as someone does! Honestly, I don't think there is one single person on the entire net who doesn't want the same exact thing. We all want to identify with something or someone, we all want validation. Nowadays, the net pretty much makes it happen in some way or another.

I attempted to get some use out of my dead thread which preceeded this one; I would use it as a social experiment instead, since I couldn't use it to gain readership or conversation! So what happened on Mene was pretty much instant closing down; no fuss, just a quick 'sorry, I didn't bother reading this, it was too long for me, I am a busy mod, and it APPEARS to break the rules, so just to be on the safe side, I am closing it'.

What do you suppose happened on the widely known and hated by several Gaia Online?
Well, I posted the same exact thread in their poisonously notorious Extended Discussion forum. The social experiment was underway. Would it meet with sympathetic or curious readers? Well, if you know the nature of the beast, the answer will be obvious. A couple of trolls tacked on meaningless drivel which I'm sure they assumed would somehow validate THEM. See, validation for everyone comes in a different flavor. It makes no sense whatsoever, yet all the sense in the world.

Right after these trolls came and got their lulz, (a term only the internet could have possibly coined!) immediately followed the complainers whose only intention in these forums is to validate themselves by informing you that you have been reported to their gods, the almighty moderators. The thread was then whisked away to chatterbox, presumably to be buried under the literally billions of 'bump me' and 'look at my boobs' threads. Did my thread deserve it? well, yes and no.
It all depends on one thing. Whose validation you go by.

Thank you whether you read or not!

Disclaimer #2:
Discussion is not only encouraged, I would love to sit and chat with you, too!
Please let me live this time, mods!