You know that asshat who keeps sending you trackback spam for Casino sites and Viagra offers? Yeah, well… umm… that was kinda… well it was ME. Am I sorry about it? Yeah, sometimes I get really choked up about it–like the other day when I got some caviar caught in my throat and tripped over that suitcase full of cash on the way to get more champagne.
For a long time Google endorsed viral link building on sites like Digg with no reservations. They figured the “wisdom of crowds” would naturally prevent undesirable content from becoming popular and getting links. Of course this is because the folks at Google tend to lead sheltered lives, and don’t believe people would ever sell votes, links or social media influence for cold hard cash … those of us living in the real world know otherwise.