Thursday, January 26, 2006

WANTED: Third Blogger

Wongdoer's current job requirements render him even more useless than usual. To take some of the load off, TKM is seeking a third blogger. Here are the requirements:

(1) Opinions -- you need to have them, left-wing moonbattiness not allowed for a co-blogger (we get enough in the comments), but reasonable lefties are more than welcome (Kevin Drum/Josh Marshall/Marty Peretz types, not Maxine Waters/Cynthia McKinney/Howard Dean). This is also a pro-Israel site. That means if you think Rachel Corrie was murdered or that the Jenin Massacre actually happened, you need not apply (but getting your head checked would be potentially salutary).

(2) Reason -- you need to be able to do so.

(3) Integrity -- if you fark up, you need to 'fess up. You also need to note your sources and link where possible.

(4) Time -- you need enough to post an average of 1-2 items (essentially 5+ posts) daily during the week, whenever you want to. Obviously, there are no hard and fast rules. Timeliness helps. I like Overlawyered.com, but they act on a 2-4 week delay for many of their items and I'd prefer not to do that.

(5) Rules -- follow the three rules at TKM: (a) no uncensored or unmodified curse words; (b) delineate who said what (we set off article quotes in blockquotes or colors or quote marks) and cite the sources; (c) correct your mistakes of fact if you honk on first posting. That's it.

Questions you may ask that I'll answer ahead of the query (can't call this a FAQ b/c no one asked anything yet):

-- Who is in charge?
Me, The Monk. It's my site and I both have and reserve the right to do whatever I want with it. For example, I can go into any of Wongdoer's posts and edit them. I don't do that. He has no such ability viz. my posts, the layout of the site or other content (links, ads, etc.). That said, I do not really exercise that right except as to peripheral concerns (links, ads, etc.): First, Wongdoer is fully involved in my decision-making (or decision-stalling) process on whether to change platforms and you will be too; second, I do not edit Wongdoer's posts for content and rarely edit for style or grammar.

-- What do I get paid?
Not a penny more than Wongdoer. And he gets nothing. Then again, so do I.

-- What are you looking for in the posts?
Whatever you're interested in that fits within the genres of the site -- sports, politics, religion (no proselytizing, but explanations and discussions of interesting topics are welcome), books that interest you (we all like sci-fi and fantasy fiction but you don't have to), travel, photography. I don't think knitting, needlepoint, why dogs eat their poo or how to distinguish the different species of warbler found only in Northern Minnesota fit. Also, this is a family show -- we don't need to know what you've got going on in what should be private moments and you're not allowed to post anything that wouldn't get a G or PG rating from the MPAA.

-- What if I disagree with you?
Have at it. If it's a short point, put it in the comments part of the disagreeable post. If your position needs extra explication, post a statement yourself.

-- What knowledge of blogging do I need?
None. You can learn whatever you need to know very quickly. I did and I taught Wongdoer. Then the bugger went off the reservation and learned how to fark everything up (hence, all the hinky colors he uses).

-- What do I do if I'm interested?
Contact me at my hotmail email address listed on the left. A sample post you've done at another blog, or comment you've written here or elsewhere would help distinguish you from any other applicants (if we have more than one).

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