The Internet Is A Public Place - Expect Critics!
There will always be people who cannot take criticism, even of the constructive type who will "attack" those trying to help. Much of this behavior can be seen on Internet forums and discussion boards which is prone to free speech that is unregulated. Sometimes people offer helpful advice that is taken out of context and they will get flamed for it. Sometimes you will encounter people who are just plain rude for the sake of starting trouble. The point is there are all kinds of people online. If you put up a web site, you will be showing your work to people from all walks of life.
Sometimes people attack what they don't understand. Sometimes people attack out of jealousy. Sometimes people think they are being helpful, but are tactless at doing it and appear as if they are "attacking". Sometimes people get a rise out of attacking. Sometimes a comment meant in jest or tongue in cheek is taken out of context and appears to be an attack. And sometimes people are just jerks. However, they all have the right to free expression. If you exercise free speech and put up a web site, be aware that people are also free to react to what you expressed.
Politics, religion and heated topics offer a lot of potential for heated debate and critics who are not always respectful. Growing up, my mom always told me religion and politics are not good topics for mixed company because they tend to lead to war. If you are creating a web site with the goal of earning a living, you do not want to alienate your audience by bringing up such topics. On the other hand, if your site is only about bringing up these issues and to cater to that particular crowd, be prepared for the backlash from detractors who won't play nice with you.
Freedom of speech is a two-way street. Freedoms are not easy, but a guarantee. With all freedom comes responsibility. You are free to express yourself. When you express yourself, you also need to realize others are free to express themselves in a reaction.
If someone near you were telling a racist joke, do you sit quietly and ignore it or do you say something? If someone told a lie about your best friend and spread a vicious rumor about them, do you bite your tongue? If you see something unjust was being done, do you sit back or take action? If you put something up, be prepared to back it up and defend it. If you see something you disagree with, you can choose to do something about it or ignore it. If you choose to do something about it, prepare to defend your position.
Not everyone will agree with you or like what you have expressed. Others will. Just because you don't like what was being said does not mean you should shut up about it if you have a voice that needs to be expressed simply because the one who spoke it might feel attacked. When the person first opened up, they took that risk that what was expressed may be cheered or jeered. They should be able to take their freedom of expression with the responsibility that comes with it.
Slander, lies, and yelling fire in a public theater are not guaranteed freedoms of speech. When you slander someone, you can be hauled into a court of law and sued. When you lie to the court, you can be jailed and fined. When you yell fire in a public theater, you risk killing people.
If you express your feelings or opinions, it is always wise to state this is how you feel or your opinion instead of stating something as factual, especially if it is something that can be insensitive to others who might be accessing your free expression. It is always amazing that someone can say something so dreadfully offensive, insulting, and dehumanizing about someone in a forum or on a web site, but when they get "attacked" over it they complain. Some do not view it as such, but merely expressing a counterpoint. Again, free expression goes both ways.
Wouldn't it be better if one were to consider what they are expressing before they express it? Who will be viewing it and will it be taken as offensive? Is the thing you are expressing a fact or opinion and can you let others know before you express it?
If your site is just a personal site you put up for family and friends, it doesn't really matter too much about the little things, but keep in mind, the Internet is a public place. A personal, private site you want to go unnoticed by total strangers is like wanting to have a private moment with you really getting into tongue kissing your dog on the streets of Downtown New York.
If you make a smelly, bodily noise in a public place, people will react. If you are wearing something beautiful and eye-catching in a public place, people will react. If you put a web site in the public place of the World Wide Web, people will react. A shy, overly sensitive person designing a web site for the public makes as much sense as the same person doing a Broadway show and expecting nothing but praise.
The vast majority of people will try to take the polite approach of, "if you have nothing good to say, say nothing at all." These are the ones who would have to think twice about letting a lady know her skirt is tucked in her underwear from behind for fear they may hurt her feelings or upset her and risk her further humiliation because they are not bold enough to offer the helpful advice to pull down their skirt.
Some of the ones who will make comments will range from the rude and offensive to the ones who want to offer you helpful advice on how to improve what you are doing. Unfortunately, there are overly sensitive people out there who cannot tell the difference and resent anyone making anything other than praise for their efforts. Then they get bent out of shape when they do an awful web site that gets little or no traffic and makes no money and a helpful stranger tells them exactly why and how to improve it.
The emperor does not always want to know they are naked. Sometimes they know they are naked and don't care. Other times they are delusional and think their work is great and will not listen to things that are not praise - in their minds it is not the web site at fault, but you are the one in the wrong for not realizing the greatness of their site. Others still will hear only what they want to hear and tune out the useful advice and then wonder why they are a failure after ignoring the advice they failed to hear by blaming the one who gave them the useful advice they ignored.
The point is, if you put a web site out there, chances are strangers will see it. It IS a public place with very little privacy. If you put it out there, you risk a public reaction. It is just the same as if you make some controversial statement in public, you may have the right to say it, but people also have the right to react to it. If you cannot take comments, compliments or critical opinions, put up a web site at your own risk and if they hurt your feelings, it is your tough luck. Remember, every action creates reaction.
This brings me to two points. First, if you only want to do a personal web site for family and friends, consider password protection so only those with a password can access it and it is unlikely to be picked up by web spiders which announce to the world at large you have a site. Second, even if your audience is among family and friends, don't ask them to visit your site unless you actually want to risk a reaction from them.
If you are creating a business web site, then you need to consider what you say, how you say it and how it is presented if you really want to be a success online.
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