http://www.flickr.com/photos/adobemac/ / CC BY-SA 2.0
I joined a group of folks at a gathering the other day. It was a relatively small group. I don't really know if there was anybody there I would've recognized as they all seemed to be behind some amorphous veil. I couldn't really see them. And, it wasn't like I really had an opportunity to hear from many of them, anyway, since they seemed sort of quiet. Too bad, really. I would've wanted to get to know some of them.
As for the host, I only sort of knew him. We hadn't really spoken with each other before; we weren't drinking buddies, or anything like that. To be honest, I was just walking by this room where he was speaking and caught a few words that related to a topic I was interested in. I decided to peek in. And, since the sign said "welcome," I took a seat and decided to listen a while.
The speaker was interesting. Although I didn't necessarily agree with everything he was saying, I knew our differences were minor and his points expanded my perspective of the subject matter. He continued to hold my interest. (Why was everybody else so quiet?)
I also liked that he was conscientious. He seemed careful to pause every now and again to invite comments or other points of view from his audience. And that's why I found it curious that, given his eloquence and the interest-factor, there didn't seem to be much active "give and take" between the speaker and his audience. So, I decided to wade into the conversation. What a bummer that turned out to be.
Right before the next break, and when the host took a moment to pause and invite comments, I bit.
But, rather than quickly raising my hand to say something pandering like, "good point" or "I agree", I wanted to take a little time to organize my thoughts on paper.
The way I saw it, regardless of whether I agreed or not, I respected this guy enough that I wanted to make sure what I said was respectful of his forum, his time, and his perspective. I also hoped others would react, in collegial fashion, to what I say and continue the conversation.
Only, none of that happened. It turns out, my respect was misplaced. I was diss'd.
After taking time to draft my considered response, I finally raised my hand and, at the appropriate time, spoke. Funny thing... he didn't seem to hear me. In fact, nobody else seemed aware that I had uttered a word.
I looked around to see if I had missed some cue. Maybe I busted some unknown group culture and should be embarrassed. I looked left, right, down and scrolled my eyes up a bit...then I found it.
There was a little sign I didn't see earlier. Not that I would've seen it anyway since it apparently doesn't materialize until after someone in the audience decides to join the conversation. But, sure enough, there it was. I recognized it immediately since I've seen it before. In teeny-tiny letters were the words:
"Your comment is awaiting moderation."
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