So a nude shot got a Daily Deviation today, as it often does, and I’ll admit that it wasn’t a very remarkable one. I, personally, didn’t care for it either way.

The attitude demonstrated above, however, is a cancer upon our collective culture. One person after another commented on the entry with nothing but “ew, this sucks” or “boring and shitty”, only to get defensive when their oh-so-precious-self-expression gets a reaction that, GASP, is as negative as they were.

Oh my god really!? You mean you won’t get a thank-you note? You mean they won’t go back and take it all down and never do it again just for your private satisfaction?!

I know this will be difficult, if not impossible, for many precious internet snowflakes to process, but a negative opinion does not have equal value to a positive one. In fact, it has the opposite value. Believe it or not, that is the basic principle behind the concept of “positive” and “negative.”

Telling someone you dislike their work - and nothing else - IS ABSOLUTELY 100% VALUELESS EVERY SINGLE TIME. It does not encourage improvement. It does not tell anyone anything interesting about you. It does not contribute, period. It makes you look nothing but petty and incapable of handling even the most tenuous social interaction through a digital medium. How sad it that?

If you feel the UNDYING NEED to tell someone you don’t like their work, instead of, you know, looking at something else maybe, there are infinite ways you can do so in a constructive, helpful fashion. That is the definition of “critique;” to tell someone how they can improve in the future. This actually does contribute something, and it makes you look like a competent adult instead of a spoiled god-damn brat.

And no, a “polite” comment that still amounts to nothing but “I don’t like this” isn’t any better. “Sorry old chap, this isn’t my cup O’ tea!” makes you look exactly as pea-brained and self-obsessed as “Tihs shit sux!” A turd is still a turd with glitter all over it, and your negative opinions are TURDS. You are leaving the equivalent of your feces on someone else’s art or writing and then demanding they “appreciate” your “input” because the world has told you your input is its own innate value, a lie as laughable as the people who believe it. I think I may have been channeling something David Wong once said here, I can’t remember.

Now, with the introductory concluded, here is the HANDY GUIDE I promised! Just consult this in-depth set of rules the next time you feel like commenting on someone’s photography, blog, videos, drawings, or just about anything!

• A FAILURE TO APPEAL TO YOU IS IN FACT YOUR FAULT.
• SEE ABOVE.