Public vs. private

I'm still wrestling with this entire notion of public versus private. Whether it's blogging or it's Facebook they all seem to traverse a shady line between the two. I am definately enjoying the fact that in order to blog at all one must or should perhaps at least try to formulate some sort of opinion on the subject matter at hand. If it's just cherry picking stuff from around the web then it can only ultimately be short lived unless you've got all the time in the world to ensure your content is better than the rest. Unfortunately I don't so my posts need to have some poinnt otherwise I don't think I would bother.

The bigger issue I have is that this experience however cathartic is alot like writing a personal journal. If someone found and read your actual journal you'd be pretty annoyed wouldn't you. But because it is the internet and everyone and everything seemingly enjoys a veil of anonymity (however false) it's okay to publish your thoughts for the world to read. This of course raises the side issue of whether or not anyone in the world actually even cares. I could confess to murdering my postman on this blog and more than likely noone would ever even notice, well why would they stumble across this blog over any other?

The other question i've got concerns the point at which it becomes acceptable in face to face conversation to let someone know that you've read their blog. If as i've speculated they've written personal information for instance about an illness...should you be able to casually mention this in conversation as if you'd been told it directly? Are blogs challenging normative sociological behaviour, discuss.