It was a great year for me, my family and my friends who are hearing, hard of hearing and deaf both in the internet and real world. The year 2005 was my first full year as a blogger as I intrepidly moved into the world of blogging where my blogsite is slowly becoming a growing and nationally known premier blogsite maintained by a hard of hearing owner.
People from around the world, even from the depths of a tyrannical and theological country, Iran, came to read my blog. Numerous well known bloggers that generate tens of thousands of hits a day such as Michelle Malkin (here, here and here), Blogs for Bush, Iowa Voice, Captain's Quarters, and Betsy's Page have linked to my blogging as an additional resource of information that I have reported on. Plus numerous other lesser known blogsites such as the up and coming common sense political bloggers Rhymes with Right and Generation Why? who have linked to my blogged articles. Even getting a call from a reporter from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (scroll down a ways, Blogger.com is experiencing a software glitch offsetting some of my blogs by moving it towards the bottom) about Simich Jr. was a surprise for me where the reporter wanted my opinion for her paper about the double homicides that shook the Deaf community. Maybe someday my blogsite will get mentioned in a conservative cartoon? Wouldn't that make my day. The list of bloggers that connect to my site will hopefully continue to grow in 2006.
My goal and aim, as always, are to reach both hearing and deaf readers and bloggers from around the world regarding different aspects of what a deaf/hh person can do such as wildland fire fighting, strongman competition, deaf aikido on martial art, or even keeping an interest on a newly soon-to-be-developed-one-of-a-kind commercial spaceport in New Mexico because of my interest on space and technology, and being so close to it, too, counts alot. Even when hurricane Katrina hit the deaf/hh community hard I was there to try and help them, and many responded to me in emails of their appreciations when I set up my Deaf Survivors blog. Michelle Malkin promptly recognized my new blog to help deaf and hard of hearing survivors of killer hurricane Katrina that have killed several hundred people and stranded millions. Even then I got criticized by a few in the Deaf community for trying to help. Incredible.
I consider my Kokonut Pundits blog to be one of the most unique blog among all other deaf/hh bloggers and it should only get better with time, barring unforeseen events. My realm isn't limited to things only about deaf people or the community but about what deaf/hh people can do and that they can, too, be just as successful as the next hearing person such as Jason Curry of sComm.
Bloggers of political "savvyness" and knowledge value my blogsite where my opinion is worthy of a link. I am humbled. Honored. And get ecstatic when that happens. This is my badge of honor. My reward. A recognizance from outside of the "deaf bubble." A rare feat indeed it seems to be the case here among all other deaf/hh bloggers. Even getting a nod from Michelle Malkin one day did in fact help generate my best traffic ever of over 1300+ hits in a day on my blogsite. Probably the best response ever among deaf/hh bloggers. No lie.
For those who are not familiar with Michelle Malkin's blogsite, her blogsite generates on average almost 70,000 hits a day. A nod from her in her blog article to somebody else's blogsite will generate a tsunami in that direction. This is true from any reputable blogger that has an extremely large reader base. But the question is, how big will a nod get you? That depends on the subject or topic of discussion being thrown your way. Mine was a small one but enough to help generate 1300+ hits in a day. And that was just from a simple nod from Michelle Malkin's direction! Boy, talk about blogging power. A nod there. Poof! Instant traffic spike.
I have earned my place through legitimate, dedicated hard work in the blogging community where other bloggers, deaf and hearing, will continue to read, recognize and link my bloggings or my blogsite. Calling me a liar in that respect about my blogging connections or traffic hits is a sign of utter jealousy with a defeatist attitude. Deaf militancy is not a place in this world. If you can't stand my talking about politics and religion (or anything else I discuss) then don't read my blogsite! Attack the arguments rather than the person by calling him every name in the book. Not a very productive move. Is this is what the deaf community famous for? I hope not. And, oh, please, stop with the incessant whining about my blogsite or tell me how to do my bloggings or how I handle commenters who won't abide by my rules by keeping the comments clean here. It is just embarrassing to see such mindless rants. I certainly do not do those things about your blogsites or tell you what you should write or not write. Why should I? It's your blogsite and you're entitled to say whatever you want. But if you continue to remain clueless and whine some more about the person doing the blogging, I'll make sure I get my jollies knowing that this is the case.
Having said that, it's also sad to witness others in the Deaf/deaf community react violently to my bloggings (see here and here for explanations) and how many of them choose to bash me (rather than challenge my arguments which I would rather see) for making my political opinions or arguments known about mostly liberal (ie. extreme leftwing Democrats rather than the moderate Democrats) and RINO politicians for the most part, and even some comments on issues within the Deaf/deaf community. I bash about these politicians rather than some specific bloggers. I do not call these bloggers names and attack them with such hate, vigor and vile. It simply goes against my style, taste, sense of humour and common sense. Sure, between the line comments I'll make but that's for you to find out. That isn't bashing, that's being subtle.
Outright bashing of bloggers is the typical mindset of how some people behave when they cannot come up with a definitive argument to counter my arguments thinking a swear word or two will surely make the case. Hardly so. I truly hope that bloggers within the deaf community (and those in the hearing community, too) are much more sophisticated than that when it comes to debating in 2006. Just keeping my fingers crossed here that somebody will learn something this time, especially in politics and the rule of engagement.
The year 2006 will yield lots of surprises for readers of Kokonut Pundits. I've only just begun. Love it or hate it, I cannot possibly please everybody with my blogging. If you're trying to change my style of blogging just to accomdate or please your taste, you're out of luck. Don't even bother. But at least readers keep coming back, even from Iran of all places. That's a sign of progress in my book.
Thank you all for visiting, linking and commenting on my blogsite. I hope your 2006 will be an even better year than 2005. Prosperity and health to all. A happy New Year.
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