If a writer can do poor work (which is over-blowing this particular situation by a fair amount) and get someone to pay for it, good for him. If a theater company can put on a crap show but convince people it’s good and get them to buy tickets good for the theater company. If a shortstop can play crap defense and win Gold Gloves, good for him. But if independent parties have ANY obligation in such a situation, it certainly shouldn’t be to protecting the fraud.

Thinking that writers must protect writers (or actors protect actors) is obviously a much milder version of things than the other things I alluded to, but the theme is the same.

People banding together simply because they have something in common (we’re writers… we’re men… we’re white…), irregardless of what is true, what is just, what is best for the greater good, that kind of decision-making has led to a lot of the world’s problems.

But you are never ever allowed to tell someone who might come by a ticket to the show that you don’t like it. To everyone outside of your small theater community you’re taught to say that this is the best production of this play that you’ve ever seen.

So I can understand the columnist/blogger who makes his living off of people coming to his site being upset that a collegue, who they expect understands the inherent difficulties in generating eyeballs, would air their problems with his article publically in the comment section when you could send him an email. It feels like you’re telling people that his show stinks and don’t bother buying a ticket.

This kind of thing never felt like ‘baseball writers’ are better than the masses to me. It just feels like ‘dude, we’re both trying to make a living doing the same thing, why are you making that harder on me?”

It’s an unwritten rule: don’t step on my mound, don’t steal bases in a blowout when you’re the team in the lead, don’t trash me in the comment section if you’re another writer. Stuff like that.

So is Rob in charge of all SBNations baseball pages? I wonder how much that responsibility will cut into his writing.

Writing = pee

Post = tree

Just as a dog get’s miffed at another dog peeing on his tree, the elusive blogger also gets angered. when another blogger “pee’s” on his “tree”.

So it’s like that really? Such a shame, I enjoy seeing other dogs pee around here. I like the insight.