Like that Yellow line on T.V. during Football games.

Wow. I feel like I've been doused with a bucket full of cold water. And I'm not talking about the cold cold rain I just had to actually walk through.

I've mentioned before that I like reading Dooce. I think Heather's a good, funny writer, and I envy her success and her ability to stay home comfortably with her whole family.

I just happened across some very hate-oriented blog entries about her and it struck me that people are crazy. Everybody is just batshit nuts.

I totally get why her brand of writing/topics might not be your cup of tea. I totally get why some people would object to even the idea of making money by writing about the day to day life of your child. I even get that some people just can't be bosom buddies.

Up until this point, I've read Heather's descriptions of negative reactions to her blog, but I'd never really understood how venemous they were. I don't feel overly protective of Heather. I like to read her stuff, but I'm not her best friend. She doesn't need my protection. She's an adult who writes stuff on the internet. She's been at it long enough, successfully enough, that's it's clear she needs no one's protection - she's doing just fine. Negative reactions and/or commentaries about her, her blog, or her family fall into the freedom of speech category for me, so I don't have a problem with those either. But I elect not to read hateful or overly negative commentary.

My confusion and shock is at just how virulently hateful that commentary can be. I'm sure all the A-List bloggers have experienced their fair share of hatemail, but gee wiz. If that's what Internet fame is, I don't want it. I'd have a nervous breakdown.

People are COMPLETELY nutty.

Nutty. Let's try this. If I were world-famous and I wrote that I think it sucks that Peanut Butter isn't allowed in schools anymore for fear that a kid with a peanut allergy will take a whiff and need to be rushed to an emergency room - I'd be drawn and quartered by a significant percentage of the blog-reading population.

It's not that I'm saying the kid deserves to die. It's not that I'm saying I'm going to pack my coat with peanuts and high tail it to the nearest elementary school like a food-allergy bomber. I'm not saying that I'll every do anything to change the policy. I'm saying that peanut butter was a classic childhood "staple" and I find it weird and possibly overprotective of us -as adults- to completely restrict it's utilization as a lunchtime nutrient.

Even if I spent the time to qualify my statements like that, I'd still be majorly attacked. The frenetic twitching of my left eye as a result of the barrage of internet anger wouldn't be worth a lofty stage from which to proclaim my opinions.

I don't envy anybody who has that stage.

I'm coming down mainly on Heather's side in this because I don't understand needing to be so loud while broadcasting such hatefulness and anger. I mean for goodness sake, stop reading what you don't like! Walk away! Turn the other cheek! I'm having a hard time comprehending what inspires the drive and energy to condemn a woman for ... writing about her family?

Then again, there are things that impassion me to the point of lengthy internet diatribes. I acknowledge that not everyone agrees with me upon all that inspires me to wax rhapsodic. But I still don't get the need to personally attack someone who says something I disagree with.

Maybe I'm incredibly naive, but I have a hard time believing that it would be impossible for any two random strangers to not be civil and respectful of each other at ANY time. You may not like someone. You may INTENSELY not like someone. You're entitled to SAY you don't like that someone. You're entitled to shout it from real rooftops or Internet blogs. But why is it that I can jedi-sense a line that shouldn't be crossed... and others leap across it like a zombie jonesing for some brains.

What about us determines where that line exists? Where is yours?