I find commenting to be an extremely masturbatory act (Commenting, not discussing). A blog is just a comment no one asked for so I guess this makes this piece a big jizz in the face of someone who really would have preferred to have stayed jizz free. The act of going out of your way to voice your opinion rather than keep it to yourself has always seemed this way to me, so I guess that makes me a wanker too.

A new Modern Warfare 3 game play trailer has been released, it looked pretty neat, plenty of seemingly in game footage and actually got me interested to see the finished product. It did not get me to voice this opinion below the video.

(It didn't get me to write this blog either, the subsequent comments below said video did, that said I'm just sectioning off my comment away from that site and bringing it here. But then this blog isn't about the trailer more the response to it and other articles, videos and what have you. Maybe that's ironic but I don't think it can be irony if it's self aware.)

There was the expected flame war between BF3 fanboys and MW3 fanboys below the video prompted from a "How much for this DLC?" comment on the video with various "my dick is bigger than yours" and quotations from The Rock... seriously. And I got to thinking what prompted the "How much for this DLC?" comment? Well clearly opinion but then why share it? No one but you cares about any opinion you hold. This statement is largely true in life and ALWAYS true online. Ever debate anything in the pub? See how much time you spend listening to the guy opposite you as oppose to waiting for your turn to speak. This is all the more true when the topic is something we feel strongly about.

The Internet has bred a sea of people who comment, blog and vlog (IRONY... but self aware so fuck off) in the bizarre notion that their opinion is worth voicing. The vast number of times it's not. How often do you see a comment like "Not gonna pick this up" or "awesome :D:D:D:D" or "FIRST!". The people who type such a comment below a whatever it may be.... do they honestly feel that this is a contribution to anyone's day? If they do then they're probably socially inept or below the mental age of 15. If they don't, if they realise that this comment with affect no one in any considerable way but say "fuck it I'll type it anyway"; they are filling the internet with their onanism!.

Discussion is totally different. Anyone who comes to comment to impart new info, ask or answer a question is engaging in an act of interaction which couldn't be correctly classed as masturbatory. The old adage "if you have nothing nice to say, say nothing" could be adapted to comment sections for "if you have nothing interesting, informative or funny to type, type nothing." Of course what is interesting or funny is subjective so just stick to the informative to be safe.

This may have been my most rambling ramble yet, not even sure if that comes across as coherent.

I'm trying to find your coherence if you're not intending to be hypocritical on purpose. People value others' opinions because it validates their own; even if people challenge them and they defend their opinion, it reaffirms that they actually want to defend that opinion.

I'm very confused by the post you're referencing, though.

@Little_Socrates: it was IGN :(

The validation argument enforces the masturbatory aspect of it. "I comment so other people will agree and make me feel good." It's all onanism.

@King_Bonzo said:

The validation argument enforces the masturbatory aspect of it. "I comment so other people will agree and make me feel good." It's all onanism.

What if people like lively debate? That doesn't necessarily seem masturbatory. In fact, it may actually be productive.

@Video_Game_King: Discussion is totally different. Anyone who comes to comment to impart new info, ask or answer a question is engaging in an act of interaction which couldn't be correctly classed as masturbatory.

Nobody Cares About Your Opinion But You

@AhmadMetallic said:

@King_Bonzo said:

Nobody Cares About Your Opinion But You

You're entitled to your opinion! P.S. no one cares about it but you.

prime example of what I mean. You're not asking a question or bringing a new opinion. You're basically wanking into the comment box right here.

@AhmadMetallic said:

@King_Bonzo said:

Nobody Cares About Your Opinion But You

You're entitled to your opinion! P.S. no one cares about it but you.

prime example of what I mean. You're not asking a question or bringing a new opinion. You're basically wanking into the comment box right here.

@King_Bonzo:

But can't that overlap with presenting your opinion? Remember that masturbation can be productive if it's in a sperm bank or a dark alley.

@AhmadMetallic: couldn't agree more. Yet still people comment, gotta keep that circle jerk going ;)

@Video_Game_King: hypothetical masturbation :)

@King_Bonzo: Someone needs to photoshop your avatar with jizz all over it.

MASTURBATION, MASTURBATION EVERYWHERE

@King_Bonzo said:

@Little_Socrates: it was IGN :(

The validation argument enforces the masturbatory aspect of it. "I comment so other people will agree and make me feel good." It's all onanism.

No, but it's not just "so other people will agree." If people disagree with you and you stand up for what you believed in, it doesn't really matter if you convince them you're right; it matters that you actually stood up for what you believed in, reaffirming that you actually believe what you're saying.

Let's say I comment somewhere that Deadly Premonition is the best game of last year and one of my favorite games ever (which I have done, many times.) If someone disagrees simply to tell me I'm wrong and I can come up with a coherent defense for what I'm saying, it means I do actually believe what I'm saying and know what I'm talking about. Meanwhile, any new criticisms I hear help me refine the argument. In a way, it's simply research about an opinion I hold.

Masturbatory would imply that it's not making me stronger in any way and is an act simply done for pleasure. For me, discourse (whether in person or in the internet comments box) is about keeping my wits about me so that I know how to argue effectively when it's time to write a four-page essay on the tension between violence and nonviolence in the Bhagavad Gita.

Speaking of which, I have a four-page essay on the tension between violence and nonviolence in the Bhagavad Gita due tomorrow, so forgive me if I don't respond for most of the day.

@Eurobum said:

@King_Bonzo: Opinions truly are worthless, especially if they don't contain valuable stuff like careful observation, logical conclusion or some originallity at least. If it is all hearsay, value judgement and generalization, opinions actually often lead people to making mistakes and doing stupid things. This is the white noise of internet forums, sadly. I think thumbs up and down buttons and undisclosed post counts, got a lot of people to stop typing / shut up.

I agree that up/down has reduced people's willingness to comment through pure hearsay, but it's also led to others losing their sense of how to create an opinion. Someone who "likes" everything on Facebook, I've observed, eventually starts reposting chain statuses without questioning where they came from or becomes incapable of commenting without an emoticon. That problem doesn't really exist here, but this site also doesn't have a +1 button and it does display your post count. As a result, like in real life, when asking for people's advice/seeking it out, you ought to figure out whether the person in question has any qualification to give advice.

@Eurobum said:

@Little_Socrates: More to the point what George (in your quote) is saying is this, judgement (double-plus-good) is a replacement for understanding, opinion is replacement for nuance and logic. That doesn't mean that liking or disliking without any kind of explanation is something not viable to express (for maybe a very young person), it just buries everything else.

I do disagree however about credentials, people's words not their status should speak for themselves. Ultimately it's the ability to discern good advice from bad advice that a person can rely on , by testing motivation, logic and diligence of said advice.

By "credentials," I'm mostly referring to the concept you've posted of people commenting based on "hearsay, value judgment, and generalization." I agree that liking or disliking without an explanation is totally viable, I just prefer the system we have where you are forced to think at least enough to form words before voicing an opinion.