Sympathy and Reciprocity (Or Lack Thereof)

Summary

The author discusses the importance of genuine engagement on Medium, emphasizing personal taste and opinion in choosing whom to follow without expecting reciprocity.

Abstract

The article "Sympathy and Reciprocity (Or Lack Thereof)" by an unnamed author is a thoughtful reflection on the nature of engagement and community on the Medium platform. The author begins by acknowledging a sympathetic comment from Mark J. Rist and expresses intent to follow him despite his brief bio. The piece serves as a response to Rist's comment on another article by Abby Norman, which discusses the impact of illness on the mind. The author then delves into the concept of reciprocity, stating that they do not follow others with the expectation of being followed back. Instead, they choose to follow writers whose work they genuinely appreciate, thereby adding value to the Medium community through curation based on personal taste. The author asserts that their opinion on the quality of writing is subjective yet factual for them, and they encourage others to follow their work for the same reason. The article concludes with a personal anecdote about the author confronting a bank's display of a politician's photograph, illustrating the importance of voicing one's opinion.

Opinions

The author values authentic connections on Medium and follows writers based on genuine appreciation for their work.
There is no expectation of a "follow-back" from the author when they choose to follow someone.
The author believes that their subjective opinion on the quality of writing is a truth for them and should be respected as such.
The author encourages readers to follow them only if they like their writing, not out of a sense of obligation.
The author recounts an experience where they expressed their disapproval of a bank's partisan display, reinforcing the value they place on personal opinion and the right to express it.

Reciprocity or Lack Thereof

I have no “follow-back” collusive expectation.

Papirøen June 2016

No judgement on those who do.

I want you to follow me if you like my writing, not because you feel some polite obligation to do so.

I follow people who have written an article or comment that I have liked so you can be sure that the people I follow are talented. That’s where I can add value to the Medium community.

Speaking of which (Warning: Digression)

Once when I went to the local bank in Nærum I saw that the bank had displayed a HUGE photograph of Anders Fogh Rasmussen on their premises. He was minister of finance or taxation at the time. That’s the world’s worst job, by the way, to be minister for taxation (+68% and rising) in any Scandinavian country. When it was my turn, I complained to the clerk about the photograph, to which he promptly responded:

“That’s a matter of opinion”

“You’re absolutely right”, I replied, in my strongly-accented Danish, “and my opinion is that this is a very bad move; it is party-partisan and is an affront to your taxpaying customers”.

That was one of the few times in my life where I responded on my feet instead of spending hours afterwards pondering what I should have said.

Or in this case, years:

Sympathy and Reciprocity (Or Lack Thereof)

Intro

What an absolutely adorable girl!

When the body goes awry, including the brain, then the mind is experienced self-consciously as going awry. That’s what…

First It Took My Body, Then It Took My Mind.

I was not right in the head, isn’t that what she said?

Reciprocity or Lack Thereof

Matter of Opinion

Speaking of which (Warning: Digression)

The Monsignor

I read it but I didn’t understand it all.