Looking Back

June 1st passed without my noting the 13th anniversary of Unsolicited Opinion.  I began posting to this site in the second year of the Iraq war and have kept at it ever since, although more sporadically in recent years.  These days I am more inclined to post my thoughts to Facebook since more people are likely to see them there than on this blogtopian backwater.  I like the interaction I get there as opposed to the occasional comment that came my way through this site.

But Facebook is not especially good for long-form pieces where I want to include source links and explore issues in any detail.  That kind of writing belongs here.  Which is another reason that more time passes between posts.  I am less likely to be writing long-form pieces lately.  One reason is that I am working on a memoir of my Vietnam experience which has absorbed much of my energy in the past couple of years.  Aside from the routine challenges of writing, the subject matter makes requires much energy that has left me with little inclination to write longer pieces.  Much easier these days to post a quick comment or link to a story on Facebook and be done.

Maybe, too, I am running out of energy to be outraged.  Back in 2004, the outrage was palpable and the ideas flowed easily.  These days I'm no less outraged but the energy is not as strong.  I often feel like I'm just rehashing the same pieces to an audience in the high (maybe) single digits.

Still writing has its value, if only for me.  I don't think I'll stop writing Unsolicited Opinion but the volume may continue to be low.