Like something?
Upvote it.
Don't like something?
Downvote it.
Really like something a lot?
Give it the old C! if ya gots one.
Don't understand something?
Send the noder a /msg.
Pissed off at the whole world?
Have a drink and call a friend.
It isn't rocket science.
Rocket science sucks.
Just do as you will.
Don't complain when the tide seems to turn against you.
Invariably, it will.
People will upvote your work here. People will downvote it. People will C! your contribution. No one will C! your contribution. Does it really matter? It depends on how tight your sphincter is.
Why is there so much talk and so much whining about downvotes and who gets C!s and who gets upvoted to infinity? Why is there so much concern over getting something removed? Not everything makes it in the final cut and you can't start pointing fingers at what in your mind was weaker than your offering. If you are comparing yourself to other crappy writeups there is something wrong to begin with.
There are people here who get their mental regurgitations cooled. There are newcomers who have what they thought was a brilliant piece of monumental work deleted. Is it fair? No. Neither is life. As I think I've said before, Stephen King could write a book about "I went poo poo in the toilet today" and it would be a best seller. A junior copywriter will read the book it took you six years of work to write and pin a form letter to it after browsing his way through the first ten pages while eating a chicken salad sandwich. This is a microcosm of life, and honestly, e2 is a lot more fair than real life.
Which brings me to my point.
Fear and Shame.
AKA Snails and Oysters.
AKA Silver and Gold.
I know of people on this website who are afraid to hit the C! button because, well, because what they really like might not be up to the accepted standards here. If you really like it, cool the son of a bitch. I think of my C!s as my permanent bookmarks. They are a way to get back to the things I've really enjoyed reading here. That is my personal philosophy and it doesn't have to be yours. Your votes and your C!s are yours to use as you wish. Don't pull your hair out over them and don't listen to the sick birds rambling on and on about properness. Do as you will, Wilbur.
And then there is the continuing story of "downvote shame." Sounds like a broken record in my ears. Let me use the example of unexplicated lyrics. A certain contingency here on e2 believes they are the evil spawn of Satan and must be destroyed, lest we offend some copyright standards. These same people do not downvote unexplicated lyrics, but they ask for them to be deleted. You know what I think? If you aren't willing to downvote something because you feel bad about doing so, what exactly are you saying to the editor you are asking to delete them? Want to stop the ongoing submission of unexplicated lyrics? Downvote them. If all the people who ask for them to be done away with downvoted them, all the unexplicated lyrics would have at least a -5 reputation and the users who submitted them would think twice before giving us more. In one case the user asking them to be deleted actually upvoted the lyrics in question. Why? To use up a vote. I was forced to throw twelve flower pots at this individual's head. I did not want to, but I had to.
Take the power back...
Reputation can make or break a borderline writeup's life on e2. Believe it or not, many editors here look at reputation as a deciding factor in borderline cases. You, as a voter, can change the fate of a writeup. Upvote it if you like it and help save it. Downvote it if you think it is substandard tripe and help doom it.
People are people.
Writeups are writeups.
You go on even if your writeup doesn't.
Feel free to complain sometime if...
TheDeadGuy steals your spouse...
dannye sends your children to a foreign orphanage...
Apatrix gets you fired from your job...
iceowl steals your car and fills it with naked sorority girls...
liveforever raids your wine cellar and drinks all the good stuff...
Halspal disguises himself as a cable repairman and rifles through your sock drawer...
A random Content Editor takes naked photos of your grandma and posts them on the Internet...
These are real issues.
If any of these things happen, call the cops.
Writeup deletion is not all that important when it comes down to it.
And neither are C!s, upvotes or downvotes.
Once upon a time a user complained to me because her writeups weren't getting as many C!s as they used to. Apparently, unless her writeups got at least 3 C!s there was something wrong. There are others who write very good stuff that barely gets noticed at all. Then, of course, there is the one comment that is worth far more than any amount of random votes or C!s from people who were in a good mood that day. Write to write and write for those you know will read. Contribute facts and worthwhile information because you believe in this website. A user recently asked me, "Do you think there is someone out to get me here?" Probably. There is probably someone out to get all of us here. You can't make everyone love you. If everyone loved you then you wouldn't have any reason to grow, adapt and evolve. We exist to challenge each other, don't we?
Grow from your missteps.
Retool your writeup if it can be saved.
Let it rest in peace if it cannot.
And for the sake of whatever deity you enjoy thinking about
Stop dwelling on it and move on.
PS: Please stop including phrases like "I know you're going to downvote this, but..." and other
silliness about votes and C!s and "please read the writeup above first." Writeups need to
stand alone without
disclaimers that relate to voting, experience points, other writeups, and being a
work in progress. A good writeup doesn't need excuses. It flies on its own. Thank you.
Now, more importantly, can anyone tell me why Michael Douglas has been playing the same bitter, jaded middle aged man in every movie he has made in the past ten years?
There may be answers to this question after all! Here's what you said!
- Random noder #1: "It is very possible that Michael Douglas is a robot or a Martin Sheen clone."
- Random noder #2: "Cruel Hollywood typecasting, or is he just a bitter jaded middle aged guy and he doesn't feel like having to strain himself in his roles?"
- Random noder #3: "It is a mystery given that he is, like, 400 years old and gets cast opposite women a fraction of his age."
- Random Noder #4: "It has to do with the radium clock." (I'm not sure what the hell this means but I'm upvoting it anyway)
- Random Noder #5: "Because Michael Douglas is a bitter, jaded middle-aged man. Clearly, Catherine Zeta-Jones isn't helping, and he should give her up and send her over to (me)."
- Random Noder #6: "What ever happened to Mike Douglas?"
- Random Noder #7: "I blame flouridation. If he lived in a country that didn't flouridate its water he'd be playing toothless old men who cackle."
- Random Noder #8: "He can't play the part of "bitter, jaded elderly man" yet because his father has those locked up. Besides, who pays money to see middle-aged white males who are completely satisfied with life. Think of a recent movie with a role like that. Now think of one that broke even. ...? I didn't think so."
- Random Noder #9: "Most of your respondants are missing the point. Michael Douglas has reached the point where, like Al Pacino, he can get away with just playing himself in movies. He doesn't have to act anymore, but did he ever?"