Getting rid of bloodsuckers

Sometimes you just have to be careful what link you decide to click on and follow.

Warren Ellis is notorious for this. If he has a link that reads "Don't Look" then for the love of God, don't look. It normally features some horrific piece of body modification that would make even some of my more crazy friends (Hi Mireille) go "Dear sweet honourable Jesus, why would you want to do that?"

Still, every now and then he stealths one by. Like this one, for example. called What I Killed Today. It's a veterinary worker detailing what animals he or she had to euthanize that day. Which, I know, sounds horrible and morbid, but I honestly think it's just that person's way of trying to deal with their job. A job that most of us, if you love animals at all, could never do. It's not exploitive and it's oddly touching in some ways. Still, be very, very careful following that link.

But that was the way the day went for me yesterday. I kept clicking links and accidentally going to terrible things. Another one of them took me to Megan's blog. Harmless enough. Except on her blog there was a link to an Eye Weekly article on Rebecca Eckler. And then I followed the links and read, even though I knew I shouldn't.

sigh

Now, I don't like Eckler. There's not much I can add to what I've said about her here. I've tried harder in recent years to just avoid things that annoy me. That's why I don't read articles on Paris Hilton or Lindsay Lohan. I understand that by not paying attention to Britney Spears I'm putting the U.S. economy at risk, but that's a sacrificing I'm willing to make. Life's too short to spend time paying attention to things that aggravate you.

That's always been my view of Eclker. She's an annoying, no-talent hack. She thrives not so much on people who read her stuff, love her and want to be just like her, but more on people that find her annoying and can't believe people keep printing her writing.

So despite my vow that I wouldn't read her stuff, I did read the Eye magazine article and the thing she put in Macleans recently. And yeah, I got a big blast of why I don't like her. People who criticize her anonymously are cowards. Those who put their names to things ripping her are failures trying to build themselves up using Eckler as a foot stool.

I mean, there's no middle ground on a statement like there. She's either an idiot for not seeing that contradiction or a genius for putting that out there, knowing it will drive people insane. Either way, it does indicate a fairly high level of bitchiness.

However, there was one thing that Eckler was right about in that article. The people who obsess over her are nuts. The ones who keep her going. Just like a vampire needs blood, Eckler needs people who hate her. And not just hate her, but read all of her stuff to keep their hate going and reaching frantic levels. Because as long as they keep reading, hating and ranting, magazines will keep printing her.

It's such a simple, basic bit of information that I don't understand how people don't get it. If there's no hate, then editors have no reason to keep her around, because lord knows you wouldn't read that crap based on its merits.

It's not people like me that keep Eckler going. I only have a casual hatred of her. I can safely say that the only time I've thought of her in the past six or seven months is whenever I check Statcounter and see that yet another person has linked to the article I wrote about her last year. Sadly, that article still gets me several hits a week.

Look, what you need to get rid of Eckler is the same thing you need to get rid of most vampires. Sunlight. And I don't mean tossing her into the sun. I mean people need to get outside, get some sunlight and read something that doesn't drive them nuts. If enough people do that, you'll be surprised how quickly, albeit with some screaming, hissing and probably acrid smoke, the bloodsucker will disappear.

Now if something could only be done with Spears, Lohan and Hilton....

Last Five
1. Biggest fan - Brandon Benson
2. The saints are coming - U2 and Green Day
3. What's my name? (live) - The Clash
4. Song to Woody - Bob Dylan
5. How to be dead - Snow Patrol