[Prudence]

I swear this is the last time I'm going to comment on this issue. And, gosh, I hope this comes out the right way.

I thought the buttons were funny. Ha! FAQ goes to MP! I thought the word replaces were funny. And if the day had been full of sly tricks like this (a color scheme that changes hourly! random avatar swapping!) it would have been molto groovy.

The part that wasn't cool, for me, involved spoofing on interpersonal relationships. This *feels* like a community sometimes. And many people are local and see one another somewhat regularly. But for some of us it's all just a bunch of pixels.

And it's dangerous. To make a courtroom analogy (because let's face it, that's all I have any more): You've all seen courtroom dramas where the attorney asks a question, opposing counsel objects, and the objection is sustained. The jury is supposed to disregard the question, but, as they say, you can't unring the bell.

And even more damaging is as mentioned above: when people say things they wouldn't otherwise have said and reveal interpersonal relationship bits that *are* true, but that perhaps they would have rather not have been public knowledge. And that's what made me most upset. Not the initial joke (I do have a calendar and I am the champion foole at work), but the fact that as it unraveled I wasn't sure who was saying things in character and who was really angry. That's the part that left me confused. And concerned. And ultimately fairly angry myself.

And while I know y'all would never do this -- believe me, I do know this -- it started to take on a mean-spirited form, as if the goal was to get people to make disparaging comments about specific people that they wouldn't have otherwise said. In otherwords, strip away the little white lies we use to grease the social wheels. And while it makes for an interesting sociology experiment, it's not necessarily the nicest way to treat others.

If life were to grant us all a do-over, I respectfully suggest that further such episodes eliminate the interpersonal flavor. For example, Eliza's post was fabulous. Maybe someone could have inherited a mink farm from their uncle back in NC and they have to leave to go attend to it. (Hey, we used this one at work the day everyone "quit" and this was NOT the explanation that made our chairperson suspicious!) Heck, I don't even have a problem with the idea that the board was hacked. I only object to interfering with interpersonal relationships in a way that wasn't necessarily positive.

Which is a version of what I was trying to say earlier, but was too mad to do properly.

And now I'm off to do something much more important.

Like post what song is in my head.

Admit it. Now you want to know.