A good article on the decline of LJ

Sadly, this article has it exactly right:

From roughly 2002 to 2007, a core part of discussion-heavy fandom and writing communities existed entirely on LiveJournal. LJ was unique among social media networks for a long time because so much of fandom communication happened in a central location. Though other journaling platforms like DeadJournal, GreatestJournal (both now defunct), InsaneJournal, and JournalFen existed, LJ was the central fandom hub due to the ease of combining community discussion with fanwork.

Over the last half-decade, however, that community has eroded. LiveJournal has been mired in dysfunction and bad public relations. Especially prominent since Fitzpatrick’s departure in 2005 has been an ongoing cycle of friction between LJ and its userbase:

1) LJ makes business and site design changes without notifying or listening to its userbase.
2) When the userbase responds with outrage, LJ fails to acknowledge or respond in a timely manner; when it does respond, it often acts like nothing is wrong or fails to apologize.
3) Eventually, LJ retracts its latest decision and things go back to normal, but with the trust of the userbase decayed.
4) Repeat steps 1-3.

There's still a great deal of good, fun, and value here at LJ. But it's not what it was, and it missed a chance to be what it could have been, because of horrific attitudes and actions at the top.

What a shame. (via Metafilter)

An Open Letter By a Punter, About The Constitution and Marriage Equality

Previously, on Bigots: Baltimore Ravens linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo openly supported marriage equality, prompting Maryland state delegate Emmett C. Burns Jr. to ask the owner of the Ravens to violate his employee's right to free speech by quashing his public statements. Now Minnesota Vikings punter Chris Kluwe has written an open letter to Burns in support of Ayanbadejo and marriage equality:

I find it inconceivable that you are an elected official of Maryland's state government. Your vitriolic hatred and bigotry make me ashamed and disgusted to think that you are in any way responsible for shaping policy at any level. The views you espouse neglect to consider several fundamental key points, which I will outline in great detail (you may want to hire an intern to help you with the longer words):

...

I can assure you that gay people getting married will have zero effect on your life. They won't come into your house and steal your children. They won't magically turn you into a lustful cockmonster. They won't even overthrow the government in an orgy of hedonistic debauchery because all of a sudden they have the same legal rights as the other 90 percent of our population—rights like Social Security benefits, child care tax credits, Family and Medical Leave to take care of loved ones, and COBRA healthcare for spouses and children. You know what having these rights will make gays? Full-fledged American citizens just like everyone else, with the freedom to pursue happiness and all that entails.

It's all a thing of beauty, and worth reading. Twice, so go read it and kvell. (found via Balloon Juice, from whom I also shamelessly steal the edit in the blockquote)