Patriot Realm

This morning I received an email from a banned poster. It contained accusations and questions that held some of my personal information and - to be honest - I found it as low as it was disgraceful.

Isn't it grand to run a blog? I often wonder why I do it, but, inevitably it is because I love to write. I enjoy putting my thoughts into words and exploring the joy of THINKING and LEARNING and seeking KNOWLEDGE from putting pen to paper. Many of us, millions of us around the world write every day on blogs or websites or social media to convey what is uppermost in our minds.

I banned a poster and he was not happy. Others have defended him in the past. 

Today I got this email. I have blanked out my name - but - apart from that it remains completely as I received it. 

Here it is

Headline of email" The Truth about Patriotrealm "

 xxxxxx. to say the least. Well, I've had a gutful of you and leave gladly. Thanks for saving me the trouble.

Well, I will not be intimidated. I have not put images up.

This is a post about much more than images. It is about how someone thinks that they can bring down a blog with threats.

Fortunately, I am not a bad person or a weak person and I am not ready to roll over because someone threatens me.

And the accusations do not bother me, save the use of my first name, which I have blanked out. How he got that name? Hmm... 

This whole situation whereby we have to be open to the public stroke governmental regime is astounding. Our ability to have thoughts and express them is verboten in the new normal.

I will not dignify certain parts with a response. 

While some choose to post selfies and write about the meal they ate at some trendy restaurant, others choose to enthuse about their fur baby or the plight of the planet. Some are hoping that we are as entralled as they are that they just had plastic surgery or mastered a new level in a computer game.

Each to his or her own.

For myself, I blog about things that interest me: history, politics, words, commonsense and nostalgia. 

My blog jumps around like some kind of ricochet rabbit and can be about abortion one day, pedal cars the next, or the joys of rain after a long spell of drought. I see an article about life after death, living death ( dementia ) and I feel COMPELLED to write about it. 

I cannot tell you WHY it happens: it just HAPPENS.

We have covered such strange subjects as biscuit boxes, rather over-imbibing Uncles, buying wankel motors and buying doughnuts. Equally, the horror of war, the wonders of birth and the joy of neighbourhood friendship.

As the years pass, one after the other, I have not been able to see a discernible pattern in the nearly 1000 articles published on this humble blog known as patriotrealm.com. They share little DNA with each other, except that each and everyone has been written from the heart by whoever it was that sat down and took the brave step to open part of their soul to the public at large.

I do not know if people realise just how hard it is to sit, write, share of oneself and then sit back waiting for the response from complete strangers.

Each comment, or lack thereof, is a personal thing. Anyone who writes and maintains a blog deserves a medal in my opinion because public opinion can be kind. But it can also be cruel.

For some reason, we bloggers keep doing it: Buggered if I know why sometimes. It must be that compulsion to, as Redhead always says, " get it out of your system. "

These days, we have much to get out of our systems. 

Some have lives that are not free of turmoil. The opportunity for someone to locate them or identify them Remembrances of past events are best kept safe for reasons best left to the individual. 

Our countries, our lives, and our places of safety have been put into a holding pen and we no longer feel free ( or are free ) to move about, circulate and enjoy each other's company, save online as anonymous users of a place called the internet.

Somehow, writing a blog is almost one of the last bastions of free speech and the ability to react to that blog through comments is equally as important.

However, and that is a big, HOWEVER: the freedom to react is confined to whether or not the reactionary comment is acceptable to the general tone of the blog on which it is posted.

I use the analogy of going into someone's home and being served up BBQ and then spending the rest of the evening berating everyone about eating meat. If you are a vegan, don't attend the party.

Every blog gets a few people who like to provoke and ": stir " by posting snide, sarcastic or provocative comments whose sole intent is to create division.

The right of the blog owner is to ban that person from posting. Not to stop free speech, but to prevent disharmony in a gathering of like-minded people .

Many do not realise that a blog is a website created to explore the OPINIONS of the blog owner. There is NO obligation to put across an alternative point of view. 

That is why it is a blog.

Patriotrealm.com was never started as a news site. It is a blog, featuring musings and views of conservative opinion and old fashioned, patriotic ideals.

Sometimes, I find articles written on other sites that I really find interesting. I ask permission to republish them and, if and when that permission is granted, I do so. I always do it with due acknowledgment.

I have not republished any article without prior consent.

Articles are published as OP-EDs because they are opinion pieces. It is a way of saying that it is not news; merely someone's opinion. To the best of my knowledge, an opinion is still legal.

Over the years, patriotrealm.com has published articles decrying the horror of elder abuse, child abuse, and the abuse of freedom.  This blog does not condone and never will condone the abuse by government or anyone of the right of the individual to freedom of speech.

HOWEVER, if you wish to deny individual freedom you are free to bugger off and post elsewhere.

My Body My Choice. My OPINION.  For myself,  it is true for the unborn baby; true for the person who does not wish to take a vaccination that is like the Claytons of the '70's - the drink you have when you are not having a drink.

By all means, take the vaccine. But do not lecture me on my blog what I should or should not do.

I was then challenged about my fundraising costs. Apparently, I am taking money from donations to fund my lifestyle as an old aged pensioner. I can assure you that the money is being used to pay for future funding of the hosting. Many of you will have noticed that over the past week or so you get 503 messages. That is because the server I have is labouring under the current workload of over 7000 individual visitors a day.

Not much in comparison with big sites, but for us, it is amazing. Over a million hits a month. 

I can barely cover current costs, so the idea of upgrading the server is out of the question. Yeah, I am sitting on an island with a tequila right now because of a few generous donations.  Scoff. NOT.

Instead, I am sitting here, as I always do, getting up at 4am, writing, formatting and ensuring you have something new to read each day. 

Greedy bitch. Obviously, fabulously wealthy. I can assure you that I am not greedy, I am not wealthy and am not making money from donations received, I use my pension to keep this site alive.

Writers here share their opinions. ... I freely admit to being Shaydee but that is no secret: everyone knows that. I admitted that it was the case.

After nearly 2 months of being crippled, I get up every morning and manage to keep writing and all I can say to the person who sent me this email: I am still finding it hard to walk but my mind walks freely. 

Write whatever you want, but your spite will be obvious. 

By the way, to the person who sent me this email, I have sent your email on for legal advice. I have blanked out my personal name as I am not happy with it being published. 

It is fun running a blog. So I will do what he no doubt does not want me to do: publish it. 

Cheers.