Sunday, February 10, 2008

"90 Day Jane"

Just how did we get from singing hamsters and pictures of kittens to a blog about suicide? From the "About Me":
"I am going to kill myself in 90 days. What else should i say? This blog is not a cry for help or even to get attention. It's simply a public record of my last 90 days in existence."
Expectedly, the blog is generating a lot of comments. (Thus providing an answer to every noobie blogger's fear-filled question during his or her early days of blogging: "do I have to kill myself to get a few comments on my blog?" Don't hate me for that joke, please.)

I don't know the motivation behind the blog nor do I care. If it is a ploy to get some attention - and what blogger isn't seeking attention - it is a brilliant one. If it a serious attempt to observe her final days, it could be of some value. Though one wonders, how long before it inspires someone to "adapt" the blog for a video performance on YouTube?

But could her blog - and I hate this phrase - set a bad example? Could someone equate the flood of comments with sympathy (or attention) and in turn be "inspired" to try something similar? And if the traffic doesn't materialize, what would that do to the blogger's self-esteem?

This mix of "the only serious philosophical problem" and the Internet's only currency - traffic - has the potential to separate blogging from twentieth century media like books, TV and film. Follow that blog for updates.

(Link via)

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

If a blogger is trying to generate traffic by posting deadlines to suicide, damage to their self-esteem is probably a moot point.

??! said...

Inevitable, this was.

If we have videos of kids talking about martyrdom and then blowing themselves up, this was just waiting to happen.

And it's just going to get worse.

Back to the Future DeLorean Time Machine Rental Guy said...

The only way to die is surrounded by dead Reaver body parts that you've blown off with your chrobus phase rifle.

km said...

enjay: There was a sarcasm html tag in my post somewhere....but yeah.

??!: On the contrary. This makes for splendid entertainment. I am not joking (and see 90 day Jayne's blog below.)

90 day Jayne: if you say so.

Anonymous said...

Reading that made me feel really dirty.

km said...

OTP: really? why?

Anonymous said...

too snuff film for me.

Kill yourself if you want to. Blog about it if you want to.

I don't want to know. I don't want to be involved/invested. I don't want to care, one way or another.

km said...

OTP: sounds like you do care :)

Anonymous said...

So after 90 days, if the blogger stops blogging, what then? Will people start posting comments on old posts, asking the blogger to "Please reply"? A virtual version of "Open the door! Open the door now!"

km said...

lekhni: or perhaps simply delete the blogger from their blogroll?