Dave has been struggling with his celebrity status for some time now. You can see through his posts that it is emotionally draining to become the head of a movement. Whether you agree with him or not, you can’t say that he’s not passionate about his ideas.

While I am a regular reader of Scripting News, I agree that it’s probably a good idea for Dave to take some time to decompress. I’ve imagined what it would be like to become a celebrity and then be hobbled by your own fame. While I’m sure Dave isn’t getting stopped at the mall (who knows, maybe he gets mobbed at Babbages), I can see how he might want to attend an event and just blend in. Most of us dream of fame, but there is definitely a price. I’ve observed that celebrities often have to take a defensive stance because “we” assume that it’s okay to say or do anything we want to them because they are famous. They become an icon and cease to exist as a real person.

One suggestion that I’d make is that Dave find a group of people to manage Scripting News for him for a while. The domain gets a lot of traffic and it shouldn’t go to waste. I’m sure there are some people out there who could continue Dave’s traditions and keep things interesting on that site.

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