Will Wheaton has a blog. In fact, he has several blogs. For those of you not nursed on the moral lessons of Captain Picard et al, Will Wheaton played Ensign Wesley Crusher on Star Trek: The Next Generation. Mr. Wheaton’s foray into the blogosphere has given him a lasting relevance not often imparted on former staples of the Trekkie universe. What has he done with this uncommon potency?

Well, mostly he has argued with people on the alt.wesley.crusher.die.die.die newsgroup. Also, he has ensured that we all spell his name Wil Wheaton, instead of Will Wheaton. Lest we confuse him with the jazz singer of the same name (actually talented). I’ve included the original spelling in this column to avoid contributing to the ongoing myth that Will Wheaton has the mental capacity for making decisions. I refuse to submit to his Will, as it were.

But, I am not writing this column just to disparage Will. What I am more interested in is this blogging phenomenon. Blogs are becoming virtually ubiquitous. In fact, they are basically revolutionizing journalism, and the mainstream media along with it. Even the Opinions page here at the Daily Illini has a full-time blogger now (Hi Dan.) I would describe this subset of blogging as just a highly efficient method of publishing. Now, the really radically different component of blogging is the personal blog. These blogs are awkwardly situated as personal expressions to the world, but with a very nebulous purpose and structure.

The first question that comes to my mind when thinking about this is: What is the point? One answer which is relatively common is that they are analogous to journals. Hence, “livejournal.” As I have never been possessed to create one, I can’t speak directly to the motivations behind this, but it seems a little backwards. The goal of a written journal is something like recording your personal thoughts for later reflection. Translate that to the Internet and there is not much added to the equation. Oh, except that millions of other people can read your personal thoughts as well.

It’s more likely, I think, that people don’t really know why they pour their hearts out to the digital expanse. Let me take a few guesses:

They are an excellent way to passive aggressively communicate with your friends. Say your roommate is pretty lazy with doing the dishes, but you have a serious problem with coming off as “not cool.” Well, just blog about it. This works even better if you’re a jilted lover. The best way to make that special someone feel terrible is to write about how much happier you are without them.

Blogs are also a great way of telling people how interesting you are. Sure you only read half of Thus Spake Zarathustra, and you thought Neutral Milk Hotel sounded too grainy, but that doesn’t mean you can’t be hip on the Internet. More importantly, what if you actually are awesome and people can’t tell? Just blog about all the cool things you do, and no one will be able to deny it!

Finally, and most importantly, blogs are a great way to make you feel more important. Sometimes it’s really hard to convince yourself that you’re not just another yipping hyena. But you know that your poem about autumn leaves was really forceful and elegant. Just imagine all the lives you changed by posting it on your blog.

What seems so strange to me about these blogs is that everyone realizes that nobody reads them.

Maybe your mom does, or your significant other, or someone stalking you from a class, but that’s about it. In fact, the best outside exposure your blog can get is if you write about someone else’s blog. That way, when they Google their name, they might stumble upon your little slice of the Internet and say hello.

To be fair, most of this commentary equally applies to the columns I write. Well, maybe blogs aren’t so bad.

Justin is a senior in religious studies. He just finished Infinite Jest and thought it was pedestrian.