Scott over at the Daily Ablution hasn’t posted for over a month (look who’s talking!). Clive Davis has gone corporate and now blogs at the Spectator (which takes the shine off a little) and Mr Smash has been recycling his posts from the Sandbox – all very poignant but what’s going on?
On the plus side: Norm is still posting with his usual vim and vigour, Gregory Djerejian continues fighting the good fight (see Torture Corrupts, Absolutely) and Ophelia Benson (whose Notes and Comment I read religiously) has been on top form - well, she's had a lot of material to work with recently.
As for the rest, the standout for me is Zoe Brain. You never know where life is going to take you and life has taken Zoe to some strange places over the last couple of years. It's to her immense credit that she's managed to blog through the experience with her dignity intact. In her own words:
Keep it up Zoe.Mention "transsexuality" on any blog or forum, and lots of ugly opinions crawl put of the woodwork, mostly based on ignorance and misinformation. In my experience, most people are basically good. It's because they're good that they have such strong opinions in matters of morality, ethics, and the health of Society. Point them towards the facts, cure their ignorance, and you don't have to worry about changing their attitudes. Their consciences will do the work for you.
Not everyone can be reached that way: but if you respond to insults, abuse and derision in a calm, dignified and forgiving way, for every active participant in the dialogue, there's likely a dozen of readers who will favourably impressed by your civility, and unimpressed by the self-evident unintelligent bigotry.
