Editing: reading stuff that you wrote, and then thinking about it and making corrections. Or, in some cases, changing your mind completely about what you write. And doing all of this before you put it in your journal on the net.

Or, in some other cases, putting it up then editing it or taking it down completely.

Now, I certainly don't have anything against editing, although the concept is relatively foreign to me. I have been known to correct misspellings and HTML errors. Especially HTML errors; I hardly ever notice misspellings unless someone points them out to me. And that has been known to happen, too. And publicly, too... I will never use the word enervation so recklessly again. Without first looking it up. Except for this time, of course.

No, what has happened... is that these people were writing honest accounts of their lives and their feelings. Which is wonderful... I myself have always been a staunch advocate of honesty. It's just about the only thing that I do believe in anymore.

But...(No more jokes about big buts here, this is serious!) The world isn't ready for honesty, it seems. Or at least, their worlds, which is what matters to them.

I've suffered for my honesty... emotionally and financially. More than most people suffer from their dishonesty, certainly. But it has remained the one constant value in my life. The one thing that I can count on. I may not be able to stop smoking, but I can always be honest.

Being honest isn't about being blunt or unnecessarily ascerbic; it is not necessary to tell everything that you think. There are many times when you must tell less than the truth to get by in this world. But those times are few, and deal almost exclusively with personal relationships. But you must be honest about the way that you feel to the people that matter to you.

You don't need to tell your boss that he's fat and ugly and thinks about nothing but himself; he doesn't expect you to. But if your mate does something that constantly upsets you, you'd better tell them. They expect you to do that for them.

OK, enough moralizing. Back to the journals. How is the world hurting these people who are putting up their honest opinions? People who dislike honesty, who are uncomfortable with the concept, are using whatever leverage that they have to Shut These People Up! Emotional threats, threats to actual job security. Possibly even physical threats, although I haven't heard of any of those.

Is it working? It appears to be, and I'm sorry about that. There have been quite a number of disappearances lately.

And I'm not about to say that my reaction would be any different.

Makes you want to consider your words carefully. Makes you think about what you say before you say it. Are you saying something that might hurt someone? Are you saying something that might inadvertently hurt someone? Do you care?

If you do care, then you have always thought about what you say before you say it... you've always thought about what you write before you write it. And it doesn't really matter if the person that you're talking about might never read it, you've written it, and that's what counts.

It takes a certain strength to be honest; to say what you believe and not back down from it; to know that you can be hurt because of it; and to know that you are right to be honest.

It doesn't take any kind of strength to be dishonest... you just cut and run if you are discovered. Nobody expects a dishonest person to explain themselves, or to justify their reasons for being dishonest. It is obvious; in every case, it's selfishness.

Being honest means having to explain why you believe what you believe, why you feel what you feel, why you are who you are. Not easy, and not really very rewarding. Find an honest politician (if you can) and he (or she) will verify this.

Honesty has to be its' own reward.
It doesn't work otherwise.