Yesterday I demonstrated my vast powers of miscommunication to someone over ICQ (as I regularly do, being a great miscommunicator), and wondered if I could possibly sprinkle more smilies than usual on top of each message.
Not so, says “Anil Dash”:http://www.dashes.com/anil/index.php?archives/005433.php, upon being taken to task for saracasm. One should fight back against the forces that enforce online understanding at the price of sacrificing our right to cynicism. He promotes the anti-smiley “:-)” , to undermine the whole purpose of defusing ambiguity.