Sunday, January 20, 2008

RACING TOWARDS THE BRINK

Let’s take stock for a second, shall we? Wonkette has managed to put up enough posts to push Megan’s farewell to the second page. Sort of like the putting up the bullshit Ron Paul blimp post right above her farewell like minutes after she posted it (and with no by-line - hmmmmm, how strange).

So tomorrow the boycott/blackout/cockblock - whatever you want to call it - starts in earnest. We know that the Gawker overlords love pageviews and comments, so we need to deprive them of pageviews and comments until the wrongs of Friday have been addressed to our satisfaction. If this weekend is any kind of preview, this should not only work, but it should be pretty fucking fantastic. Wonkette has been as dry as fucking toast, and while the liveblog of WALNUTS! victory speak got over 1,000 views, as of my last checking it got 13 comments? Wow. And comrade Peggy Nooner has been leaving some brilliant pissed off HFA propaganda behind.

Which brings me to...

Now we are all adults and the Homofascist Army is not know for being disciplined ALL of the time, so if you need to make some quick strikes in enemy territory and pull some insurgent guerrilla goodness, I am not going to be mad at you. I can’t say the same for comrade Blogenfreude, but you can’t please all of the people all of the time. In fact I think I should be mentally ready to post the blog’s url in a comment or two (y’all, I have been deluged with emails - it has been crazy). If you do decide to leave a comment, please at least indicate your support of the cause. I have a feeling the people we want to be paying attention to us will be doing so. For those of you who will not visit at all, which I highly encourage, I will be checking in and letting you know what is going on, and perhaps capture a few choice comments (or lack thereof).

There has been some debate about continuing to comment on Megan’s farewell. I personally think the goal of 1000 comments is noble and fantastic and will actually benefit Megan and show what we can do (1,000 comments on Wonkette? Unreal). But there are those that don’t want to give pageviews, and I respect that too. So I wanted to do a little poll to help flesh out the official HFA position on the matter, because without your input, I am a dumbass. But I can't figure out how to do that (technical assistance please), so for now please just sound off in the comments.

So rest up. Drink up. Watch some football (Go Bears! Wait, what?). The battle begins for reals tomorrow, and I need my troops hungover and cranky. And for those of you that have the day off tomorrow, can I just say FUCK YOU. My company doesn’t care about black people.

20 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'd say Go Chargers!, but honestly, I don't give a shit.

My thought on the Divisive Pageview Issue is that Megan's post should remain a safe harbor for commenting, even if does put some coin in Ken's pocket. There's no way to understand what's going on -- and how extraordinary it is -- without visiting the thread, and the longer it gets just contrasts with everything that follows.

Anonymous said...

I agree with nojo. Especially if an outside reporter or whomever stops by, a large show of support may lead to an article that embarasses the management into reconsidering their position. Support for Megan more than denigration of other authors, Ken, etc., I'll add (despite some of the things I said in the heat of the moment, though I stand by them). A "Megan rulz" beats a "Gawker droolz" slant in terms of actually helping her.

Anonymous said...

I third the position of nojo and berightback, however with one suggestion to minimize pageviews. Instead of having a bunch of people trawling through the site trying to find Megan's farewell post (heretofore referred to as "Megan Rulz") we should provide a direct link to it on this site, on Megan's personal site and wherever else, instructing people to keep commenting but to go directly via the URL.

Another thought: add some meat to our angst by discussing (in the comments) the particulars of our love for Megan--her writing, individual posts that we liked, her awesome abilities, etc. Keep the dialogue positive.

litotes said...

FWIW I'm for letting 1000 posts bloom. I am assuming the comment bonus isn't discretionary, so Megan gets $$$ no matter how mad we make Gawker. Feel free to set me straight if that's not so, and I'll stop.

Hitting the same page all day does make me feel like a rat waiting for the next food pellet, though.

Re rulz vs droolz, I had no problem with Jim's posts (I actually like eau de South Park and the recurring Paultard stuff) but I don't want to enrich the death eaters any more than necessary. Does clicking on "cached" in Google count as a page view?

My company cares about brown people, so we don't get Columbus Day off. Go figure.

Unknown said...

I've linked directly to Megan's post so I'm not clicking through the home page. I thought it would be interesting if we got it up to 1000 posts there. And might be helpful to M. The boss-person sounds as if he sees himself as a 'visionary' so is unlikely to back down. But I could be wrong. It has happened twice before.

Anonymous said...

I was of the opinion that Wonkette didn't deserve the pageviews, but on the other hand, Megan gets more $$$ if we comment. At least I think so ... please correct me if I'm wrong. So, let's get it to 1000. Hell, lets go 2000, and crash the site.

Anonymous said...

It's not so much about number of comments as it is about page views. Her bonus is calculated from the number of hits a post gets. The more hits she gets on this post, the more $$$ she gets in the end. 1,000 comments is good though, because it's the ongoing discussion. We can't let this meme die.

Anonymous said...

Remember though: the memo states that any post deemed "inappropriate" can be taken out of consideration for this bonus. We can't control if they decide to screw her even more this way, though I actually doubt they will.

So I say: keep the pageviews/comments comin', since it can't really hurt, and will most likely help Megan directly more than it will help Wonkette/Gawker indirectly. But also, just in case: keep Digging other posts, too. They can't mess with those.

over and out

litotes said...

OK, here's how Gawker pays out bonuses for pageviews (I followed this on Megan's farewell page):

* "At the end of the month, if the money you earn in pageviews exceeds your monthly base pay, you will be paid the extra money as a bonus ..."

* "This bonus will replace all other bonuses that now exist ..."

* "There is no cap on the amount of bonus you can earn each month ..."

Bad:

"The site lead has the right to revoke pageviews on any post. This is to guard against the publication of material that may be inappropriate or illicit, and we hope it is never necessary."

So first, it's not comments, it's pageviews that will get Megan extra $$$.

Which is not to say 1000 comments would not be interesting (to indulge in that the figure of speech known as "litotes").

But note well, Gawker can conceivably withhold Megan's $$$, unless we turn over the rock and shine sunlight on it. Hopefuly HFA will help here.

Anonymous said...

Si Generalissimo!
Yea, Bookmark Meagan's bye-bye page and just comment there. That should send a message.
Off to bong hits and football...

Anonymous said...

This particular tactic that I am proposing just made by puke in my mouth a little. But there may be something to this....

FIRST! comments. If somebody sees a thread with no comments (or perhaps one or two), post a pro-HFA, pro-Megan, supportive-in-general-of-everything-except-Nick Fucking-Denton comment. Let them know that the Blockade is in effect.

COUNTER-R[EVOL]UTIONARIES WILL NOT BE DEFEATED. EVAH.

Chicago Bureau (ON STRIKE)

Undersecretary for Being Under A Secretary
Department of Women

Anonymous said...

BTW: One caveat to all of this. If Megan says stop, we stop. No means no. (Unless you are a Republican. In which case it, somehow, means Yes Please Mister.) Agreed?

Carry on.

Unknown said...

I'm in... which way do I aim General?!

Meagan or Ban

Anonymous said...

well color me slow but I'm still hesitating here until we know what Megan's feedback is. I know she's freaking out and all but it's Sunday, she got canned on Friday, and we still don't know the rationale for it, or what she thinks is a good idea to do. Too much to ask? I don't know, but I remain concerned that a widespread action beyond the three day strike (louder outcries against Denton, etc) might backfire on Megan. She is still working for Nick after all, people. I don't know - anyone have any feedback on that? Megan, are you going to speak out and tell us what you know and what you think?

Anonymous said...

I'd like to throw my support behind the HFA. I initially resisted out of my good old fashioned contrarian nature, and because I thought Jim was getting a raw deal. However, after reading about the shit Denton has been pulling lately, and re-reading some of my favorite Megan posts from the past few months I've decided I'm on board, and you can add my e-mail address to the list if you're still taking them.

-"Underclassed"
Underclassed@yahoo.com

Anonymous said...

Agree with nojo; also, I think HFA soldiers, sailors, airmen/women and Marines should feel free to engage in sniperish HFA propaganda every now and then--but sparingly--on other posts.

Es lebe die R[EVOL]ution!

Rptrcub
1st Armored Hirsute Division

Anonymous said...

Picketing Chicago Bureau: There is indeed a practical issue to consider here -- the Friday Night Massacre post is quickly slipping into the nether regions, and anyone less than obsessive about back-reading may be clueless about what's happening, especially as we roll into Monday.

So yes, some kind of drive-by links in new posts would Keep Hope Alive.

The Thousand-Comment March continues!

Anonymous said...

Nojo, I've flown a sortie on the WALNUTS! liveblog, with the link of Megan's farewell.

I regret that I had to give Ken any money to do this, but that is the price you pay in war.

Rptrcub
1st Armored Hirsute Division

Anonymous said...

Rptrcub: Good work, soldier. Drop by the officers club tonight for some special sauce.

Anonymous said...

Yea Underclassed! Welcome to the Homofacist Army!