Right: first, the technology’s reason for existing is a Good Thing: it’s letting people express themselves on the web more easily. I think freedom of expression is important. To argue against something that allows such expression, by removing the very real barriers to entry of coding and designing and FTPing and the rest, is a lot like arguing against freedom of speech (as Jack has said here before). When people bash these websites, what they are often saying is that such freedom should only be granted to those who meet their criteria as interesting, or literate, or clever.

Second, if what some people produce using this new-found freedom isn't very good, how much does it matter? On the web, there's an unlimited amount of space to hold all this stuff. Don't like what you see? Move on. It’s all pretty democratic. People don’t need to visit your page. And unlike TV, radio or newsprint, you’re not filling airwaves, or newsprint, that could be better used in another way.