Since my first post back on July 29, 2005, there have been 30,000 comments left on this site.
I took me 15 months to reach my first 10,000. Then, it took seven months to hit 20,000. That was back in June of this year.
Now, just over four months later, I’ve hit 30,000. This week alone there have been well over 800 comments.
And yes, I do read them all. When things get heated and comments pour in (like this week) I scan them more quickly, but it’s rare that a comment is posted that I haven’t read.
It’s amazing how many of them are constructive and intelligent (only a small fraction require censoring and/or outright deletion) and I consider them just as much a part of this site as the stories and photographs.
Thanks to everyone who contributes. You make my stories better by adding your perspectives and you keep me on my toes with your unabashed feedback and criticisms. I appreciate all of it and I hope you continue to take part in the dialogue.
Thanks for reading.
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First Comment!
Me!
First Comment!
Late Night Dibs on First Comment on 30,000 Comments Story!
Read All About It!
(Nice work, Jonathan, and Thank You Very Much for all of your hard work.)
What I would like to know is how many of the commenters were wearing helmets.
But, seriously, Jonathan, I think that you are doing a great service by offering this forum – I have learned a lot, both through your reports and the comments/feedback on them – sure, there have been times when I have been so incensed by a comment or thread that I have had to back slowly away from the computer and count to 10 before continuing on, but that\’s a small price to pay for the abundant useful information.
Keep up the good work.
Deeds not words. 30,000 comments just confirms talk is cheap and even more of a bargain on the internet. Jonathan how about we list some BikePortland\’s contributions and accomplishments?
Obviously the whole safety issue is huge and on-going. A tremendous Thank You for being a key person in that arena. Your compassion and your reporting has been top notch and I think you deserve a \”bloggie\” award.
Political activism is also huge and important. Though other organizations such as the BTA have been around longer and know the history and landscape better, your contribution can\’t be denied. Thank you for helping all us less connected types be informed and mobilized when needed.
Sharing the variety of Portland bike culture would be a third area I think we all should thank you for. You span many of the diverse bike groups and weave in and out of them with much grace. You kick butt with the OBRA crowd and clown with clowns and bombers, you report on bike lane striping and frequent city hall. Everywhere there are bikes, you help celebrate them.
So, 30K of comments is good, but it wouldn\’t happen without a great site like yours to post them. Keep it up. We need you.
Thanks for the awesome site, and keep up the good work!
More bikes, less cars!
Jonathan, you\’re doing an excellent job — keep up the great work.
30,007 real comments and 520,778 spam comments?!
Who knew spammers were so interested in biking issues?
J/k.