Memes, Links and Fucking Caveat Emptor

[ravan]

Oh Booo, Hooo! Apparently some version of the "I Write Like" meme link in some way to a vanity publishing site. Oh, Teh Horror!!

Wailing and gnashing of teeth has ensued all over LJ and DW. "It's A SCAM!!!11!!!" they scream. Waaaaaaahhh!! "You'll be cheeeeated!!!" Shrieeek!!

Yet not a single person has whined about the hundreds of cheesy memes linked to that godawful, pimp yourself out as a piece of meat dating site OKCupid. Oh, no, this is about writing, it's about art, that's somehow more holy than not being sucked into the cash eating meatmarket of online matchups at a site that only displays the "good looking" matches to "good looking" people.

Get the fuck over yourselves, people. The quiz is a joke, and anyone who falls for the crap behind any link is so stupid that they deserve what they get. Use your damned brains.

It could link straight to a testimonial driven "We can Improve™ your writing in just a week for just $250, let us give you a FREE trial now!!" bullshit site, and it would be just as valid a "meme" as any other - just another idle pastime put out as an advertisement, purchased only by the gullible or those that were searching for that anyway.

So grow up, and let me state this very clearly:

Posting in my blog of a Meme/Quiz with links does not constitute a "Product Endorsement" of those links!!

If you assume it does, please reconsider whether you want to read my blog.

Comments

[elf]

My reaction was "good to tell people it connects to a vanity press site; let 'em know who's paying for hosting the meme." Followed by, "someone's *always* paying to host the meme."

I couldn't figure out how this was a "scam." Hype, sure; an attempt to drive up their site/business by google search dynamics and whatnot. Um. So? Yeah, Christian vanity publisher; glad I didn't step in that. But not because it's a vanity press.

Okay, good to warn people that what they're selling looks to be not worth the money. Especially when their paid membership gets you (in part) an ebook available from Gutenberg for free. But it's not like people were coerced into the meme, or posting it in your journal commits you to subscribing to their newsletter or anything like that.

[dubhain]

I've apparently missed all the hype and teh drama. I posted it to FB, and haven't heard any of the howling yet. Then again, maybe I've become ++unpopular ::sob.::

I agree with what you're saying. Then again, expecting folks to make that distinction is expecting a bit much from teh internetz. I could very much wish it weren't.

Hoping you're well and that fortune is being kind to you.