This is not a popularity contest

I read Kevin’s post about the Weblog Awards 2005, and agree with that quality matters more than quantity.

This triggered off a thought – what are my personal guidelines for this blog? I’ve never written them down before as this is an ongoing thing, but these are probably the main points:

• I do not blog for popularity. My blog was not intended for mass consumption and does not claim to be the foremost authority on anything (except myself). Even so, the popular vote isn’t always the best vote, even if that’s the case for the majority of the time. I mean, George W Bush won. Twice.
• Before I post anything, I consider if it’s really worth publishing and, if necessary, whether I’ve done adequate research about the topic first.
• I mean what I say. I write about things which truly interest me.
• Conversely, I don’t talk about anybody I don’t wish to promote, nor link to them.
• I take responsibility for things I’ve written which people didn’t like to see. And in cases where I’ve been proven wrong, I have admitted so. I publish comments from people who scold me, no matter how stinging, as long as the criticism is well-founded (provided no swear words, libel, racist comments etc are involved as well). It is a good lesson in humility. Thanks, God.
• I try not to breach anyone’s privacy. If I mention someone’s name and they don’t want other people tracing them down, I will remove it. This has happened twice so far.

That being said, I’m still human and appreciate the kind words that some of you leave here. Of course I get a little excited when I’m interviewed by the press – but after a while you put things in perspective. We’re living in a tiny dot on the world map, on a planet which is just a speck in this universe. Don’t take ourselves too seriously. It makes the head swell.