"Johnny can't come online anymore. It's nobody's fault. He got a new job and the computers block the login page. It's probably just as well. Francine broke up with her boyfriend and has decided to unplug for a while. Roger is always offline. I think it's the new guys. Some of them are cool; but Jesus, it's The Invasion of the Trolls. This used to be a place where we could celebrate things we liked, now it's a competition to see see who can get the last word  in edgewise. . Anyway,I heard that B has some Hollywood Projects in the works and will shut the site down soon. I'm out of here, too. Just wanted to sahad a blast getting to know you. Maybe if Evan starts up his own site, I'll pop by and say hi. Good luck man. Take care".

The Internet connects us haphazardly. Masses converge to share common ideas, unique experiences, penny-wise insights, and to revel in shared passions. Conversations have no beginning or end; each participant joins some time during the eternal, nebulous middle. Detractors of the Internet's fan sites and forums believe the user base to be the domain of the maladjusted,  of criminals and peverts. All unfortunate such occurrences obfuscate the meaningful relationships that can be made if each conversant is honest, charitable, and mature. There is much fun to be had in these connections, but if the Internet is the medium through which we communicate (sometimes exclusively, what do we do when these folks unplug?

 There is not an easy or universal answer Since all internet experience is subjective and whatever meaningful knowledge we gain about internet culture is wholly empirical, I thought I would share some of my experiences, which provide the foundation for fictionalized account above.

My first experience with the forum culture was as one of Brian K. Vaughan's "Caballeros." Known to us as BKV, the Bald One, Fearless Leader or the more anachronistic "Vaughnatuuu" (An inside joke involving The Watcher that I never fully understood), BKV offered a consistently engaging, informative, and positive Cabal for his fans. I stumbled across his hangout when he was mentioned on The Amazing Website Of Kavalier and Clay because of his landmark and flawless "The Escapists" miniseries. The forum already had a strong foundation, but even as a next generation member, I was warmly welcomed. Inside jokes were kept to a minimum and jovially explained when necessary. I listened. I participated. I grew.

The Cabal was a great place to hang out because because of the the principles by which it was run. Everyone was required to be respectful and positive, especially about comics. We were free to say whatever we wanted about Brian's work, but we were forbidden from criticizing the work of other creators.  Even a criticism with a positive emphasis, such as "I liked the story, but the art didn't work for me", was not  tolerated. The Cabal was not a place to discuss comics, entertainment and art; it was a place designed to celebrate things we loved unabashedly.. Weekly, the Bald One would post his Top 5 Favorite Comics and encourage us to do the same. Political discussions or conversations about topics of interest were allowed, so long as respect and moderation were employed. There were some rough patches,(aren't there always?) but none of these times were impressionable enough to leave a distinct memory. 

Instead, I remember Brian's humorous, provocative links.  I remember Pia Guerra's  stunning pages and the wild, unbridled creative whiz that is Old Man Tonnnnny Harris. I  remember the  blogs from the Writer's Strike. I remember when Brian opened a thread for us to discuss Lost episodes. Sometimes, he joined in and shared tales from the writing room  with us. I remember when he announced the closing of The Cabal as he moved on to new projects. Most of us were sad, even as we understood that things change. Still,, I remember the people  most of all. These folks enriched my life considerably and helped me refine my tastes and articulate my thoughts clearly and precisely.. Happily, I'm still in contact with a few of them.

Bill.is one of the most interesting fellas I know. He has a deep love for literature and can contribute meaningfully to any conversation related to words and letters..  His love and consumption of music rivals that of a certain Sidburned Swashbuckling Murmur founder. Bill has traveled and studied worldwide. He is currently in Dubai in what I can only assume is part of his ongoing mission to spread his own crackling energy to the four corners of the globe. Bill does not know everything about me and I certainly don't know everything him, but he and I have established an easy repertoire and can discuss any topic.

I  also reconnected with Sean, which is nice because he has the admirable quality of charitably interpreting counterarguements s without abandoning his own convictions. Also, the man is one of the hardest working writers I know. He writes every damn day.  He will soon achieve that coveted balance by which one's talent is focused through one's command of craft. From the work I've seen he is closer than he realizes, In fact, he might already have achieved the balance. But he will never stop moving forward. Not Sean.

Joey is a born hustler. As I  remember things, he was one of the the most enthusiastic members of the board. If the board could be considered an 80's rap group, Joey was totally our Filipino Flava Flav  He brought the passion and the insight. These days, he's prowling the west coast in search of glory  He will find it.

Jay has an insatiable Aprilette for education, amine, Warren Ellis and the company of ladies. For these reasons, he and I get along quite well.

The Legendary Tom Daylight has a gift for witty exchanges with creators, a gift that becomes more potent with each passing day. He is well on his way to becoming the next great web ambassador  for comics culture and entertainment.,  a hybrid of  Rich Johnson and John Cleese. Plus, he links to some awesome things.

These are only those individuals with whom I was able to keep contact. There are several others I have yet to find, or rediscover. There is Dustin, who wrote  Icelander, one of the best novels i have read in the past few years. (Go read it, it's a jem.). There's Mindy, Runaways Fanwoman turned contributor Jill, Megan, Stephanie, Horatio,  The other Tom, etc. I know all these people to varying degrees, but I'd love to reconnect with them all to whatever degree is appropriate. I hope tihs article travels right from my  keyboard to their screen and I hear from some of them. Some will undoubtedly  continue to ellude me The internet multiplies exponentially. There are new rabbit holes created every minute, filled with more rabbits doing what rabbits do best. And these new rabbits find new holes in which to disappear. And the cycle begins anew.

Once certain people unplug, they don't necessarily reenter the mainframe. Life happens. Marriage. Divorce. Kids. Relocation. Underemployment. OverEmployment. Unemployment. The problem is that the Internet offers little time, if any, between Hello and Goodbye. It remains to be seen whether forums will survive in a universe that boasts Twitter, and Tumblr. If these serviced are used especially well, an individual forum like environment can be created. The "moderator" (the person followed) can highlight positive responses and ignore nonsensical negative trolls because there exists no platform on which the trolling responses are visibly aggregated in plain view of the other followers. Of course, the Twitter followers of a mega star then have no platform through which to communicate with other followers. So, the the Twitter community than the traditional forum culture.   

Maybe the quixotic relationships forged and maintained online can teach is something about those relationships that exist beyond the world of emoticons. After all, if we were to  cherish every moment in meaningful offline relationships in the same way that we should cherish every moment we share reveling over common interests online with kindred spirits wouldn'tt those relationships be more meaningful

What do you folks think? Have you ever experienced the Digital Break Up? Have you gone offline for an extended period of time like the one mentioned in the 6th Episode of  The Murmur Podcast? How did you cope with the time away from zeitgeist and the minds who inspired you to join the spirit of discussion in the first place?

Speak up. I'm listening.Chances are someone else is listening  too.

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