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content/blog/blogging-as-dialogue-invitation.md

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+---
+title: "Blogging as an Invitation for Dialogue"
+date: 2026-01-15T11:21:29-05:00
+draft: false
+tags: []
+math: false
+medium_enabled: false
+---
+
+We have many ways to share ideas today. We can:
+
+- Text
+- Email
+- Pen a letter
+- Post on a microblog (Mastodon/X/Pixelfed/etc.)
+- Write a blog post
+
+But not all of these methods inherently create a conversation or dialogue. When I write a technical blog post, I don't expect a reply. Similarly, when I toot on Mastodon, I'm fine if no one favorited the post. As such, (micro-)blogging differs greatly from texting and calling someone and is instead much closer to recording a postcast or uploading a video -- a one-way transmission of information. 
+
+Ploum wrote about how he views the [ActivityPub protocol as a conversation](https://ploum.net/2025-12-15-communication-entertainment.html), and as such servers should not filter posts based on [whether they have a picture](https://ploum.net/2025-12-04-pixelfed-against-fediverse.html). Now I'm not on Pixelfed, so I do not have a stake in this issue. However since I view Pixelfed as a microblogging platform, I tend to see it as more of a one-way transmission of information rather than soliciting a response from my friends. This view would put me in the category of folks that view AcitvityPub as a "content consumption platform." Though I find that term derogative[^1].
+
+[^1]: The idea that folks are doom-scrolling and are only consuming empty calories misses how communities are  formed on these platforms -- complete with their own social norms.
+
+Now should Pixelfed filter posts based on whether it contains a picture? I'm not sure. But if I was on Mastodon and I specifically @'d  someone on Pixelfed,  then I would sure hope that either they received that message or I was shown an error.
+
+So if we're not having a conversation with these (micro-)blog posts, what are we doing? Some of us are trying to teach, keep a public journal, or share our perspectives.  Some of us don't even want responses[^2]. Though I find that many of us do:
+[^2]: Every so often I get sad when I want to reply to someone, but I don't see an email to reach out to.
+
+> Blog posts become invitations that never expire
+> \- [Dries](https://dri.es/20-years-of-blogging)
+
+When I send a postcard to a loved one, they don't need to reply. However, I send it because it's an acknowledgement of our relationship and it's an invitation to reach out. 
+
+Similarly when I write a blog post, by default I'm only transmitting information. However, any of you readers can choose to promote this from a transmission to an exchange. From a communication to a dialogue.