D2’s LJ Use

Last Friday, I posted a poll on the use of one’s LJ. Thank you to everyone who voted! Obviously, since it’s a poll, it tends to favor those who consistently use their LJ. The question that asked if you logged onto LJ at least once a day on average? If you voted in that poll, the answer was overwhelmingly yes. I’ve learned more about the dangers of small sample size from LJ than anywhere else.

Looking deeper at the numbers, I realize that I have way more female friends than male friends on LJ. This was done on purpose. You see, most of the females in my analog life are cordial but they will rarely talk about their personal lives. On LJ people seem to share much more freely. I can honestly say I’ve learned more about how the other half lives more from LJ than anywhere else (with the usual statistical disclaimers, of course).

In terms of politics, I’m confident in saying that over 80% of my friends list leans to the left side of the equilibrium. This makes sense: the split in 2004 on LJ was 83-17 in favor of Kerry. I consider myself a moderate Republican (yes, I am a registered Republican). I live in a town that borders Arkansas and Oklahoma, and both red states came out heavily in favor of Bush and McCain. I spent a summer interning for Senator Inhofe, who believes that global warming is a bunch of baloney. What can I say, I’ve learned more about the left side from LJ than anywhere else.

In terms of religion, I understand that most of my LJ friends are agnostic, liberal Christians, or spiritual. Having grown up in a Southern Baptist church, it’s been fascinating learning the similarities and differences between various religious ideas and beliefs. I once was on the leadership team for a college ministry, although my faith has shifted more towards Buddhist ideas recently. I’ve put “Balance” as my religious views on Facebook because I’m more concerned with the balance in my life than anything else. Oh yeah, I’ve learned more about non-fundamentalist religions from LJ than anywhere else.

On the personal side, many of my friends bat for the other side or swing both ways. Quite a few are proudly polyamorous as well (how odd, Microsoft Word 2007 does not recognize polyamorous as a word). I surmise this is because the central hub of my LJ friendships branch out from theferrett and zoethe. My parents taught me that Asian culture demands faith to one’s spouse and family, so it’s been enlightening to read the counterarguments. Indeed, I’ve learned more about LBGTA from LJ than anywhere else.

In conclusion, I’ve learned a lot from LJ and still have more to learn. My music knowledge has increased greatly from the classical base I knew in high school. I am constantly entertained by the variety of links provided by my friends list, which in turn has helped me entertain my 1000+ friends on Facebook. You’ve answered my random real life questions, including cooking, credit cards and web design. Although, right now, I do have one more question to ask.

Have you learned anything from reading D2’s journal?

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The most powerful people on the Internet don't work for Microsoft, Google or the government. Rather, they're a bunch of antisocial, foul-mouthed, clever nerds who congregate at a largely unknown Web site called 4chan.org.