What's In a Diatribe?

Every few months, it seems we have to make one of these blog posts explaining what LSD is, what LSD isn't, and what our disclaimers are about (yes, we have them). So, let's start with the name: Why 'Los Santos Diatribes'? More specifically, what is a Diatribe? Per Merriam-Webster, a Diatribe is: 1) : a bitter and abusive speech or piece of writing 2) : ironic or satirical criticism 3): archaic : a prolonged discourse Based on the above, it's not without merit to say that Los Santos Diatribes is simply this: A Blog, steeped in heavy gossip and satirical criticism. We do this quite well, if I may say so, and often receive backlash for it-- usually by the guiltiest parties (Rata Ramirez was someone who loved to leave messages for us, in his own way, regarding our writing). We did branch out from pure gossip, as on the site you'll see: "Culture and Entertainment Blog". Not News (though the line between gossip and news go hand in hand), not investigations, but pure culture and entertainment. Well, for all intents and purposes, satirical writing is entertainment. We started covering local business and artists as they're a huge part of our beloved city and (at the time) weren't receiving enough love from Weazel. The times are changing, and now we're in friendly competition over who can get the story first-- we do want to continue pushing out articles about venues and artists! At the heart of LSD, however, we never stray from our original purpose-- as dangerous as it may be, which is to bring situations (re: gossip and hot topics) to the forefront and allow people to make their own decisions based on what we hear. We even go so far as to state on the very front page: "Disclaimer: Many of these articles are sensationalized for entertainment purposes. Additionally, you may find articles that fall under the category of "Opinion" and are the opinions of that author and not necessarily a reflection of any singular group, entity, or LSD as a whole." (If you haven't caught on yet, that's the whole gig-- opinions, entertainment). We've come under fire recently for having 'No bearing of reality or truth attached to it'. The good thing is-- we promised neither (though often have both), and our disclaimer plainly says that we lean heavily into sensationalized stories. If you have a problem with it-- we invite you, wholeheartedly, to reach out and tell us your own version of the story. No, seriously-- we want to hear from you. We also thought it best to let you know a bit more behind the scenes. (As a disclaimer: I hate talking about myself, I'd rather talk about you. Consider this a trade, as it were.) Q: Is LSD a business? Do you make any money from this blog? A: No, and no. Once upon a time it was a business, but business means rules, and we like playing by our own-- no strict deadlines, we cover the issues we want, and we decline what we don't want to cover. That said-- this entire site is a labor of love, and is run by a sole author and editor. Q: Is it true that Karmen McKenzie once worked at LSD? A: Yes, that's true-- Karmen actually created the logo you see here, and was responsible for a lot of the photography in the early issues. We owe a lot of our success to her. Q: Have any of your past writers or yourself been threatened or harmed for your writing? A: Journalism is dangerous, friends-- whether you're writing truth or sensational stories. We had one of our writers and photographers threatened often with violence due to their color choice in clothing (re: See the blog issue about wearing purple). I expect, some day, that my writing will catch up with me and I'll anger the wrong person. The writing is worth the risk. Q: If I have an idea for something I'd like to see written about, can I reach out? A: YES, you can! I'm always interested in a good story. Let's talk-- look for 'Eighty-Six' on Twitter. I'm not hard to find. Q: Why 'Eighty-Six'? How did you come up with that pen name? A: Think about it. If you know my name, you'll understand why-- not only that, but Eighty-Six is slang meaning "to throw out," "to get rid of," or "to refuse service to." This is why sometimes you'll see someone could get 'Eighty-sixed' in my writing. Literally and figuratively. Until next time, thank you for reading, and thank you for supporting us.