Why is it that we feel some sort of gratification when we see or hear about others suffering/feeling upset in general?

I'm not talking about the plight of the homeless or the starving children in Africa. I'm talking about people whom we know... from the interactions in our day-to-day lives. The prevalence of the blog, and the increased use of it as an online journal, a virtual wall where we can create our own graffiti... has seen many blogs which complain and whine and show outward displays of emotional turmoil, grief and what have you. And let's face it, if that person is a person you 'kind-of-know-but-don't-really-know', and you read about his/her troubles through a peephole in this internet wall of anonymity, there IS, sometimes (though you would die first before you admitted this in public), this secret glee/voyeuristic joy you derive from knowing that this person is going through a crap period in his/her life. I'm not sure if there is a logical explanation for it though. Which is what I'm trying to figure out with this blog entry...

I suppose you could look at it in the same light as the tabloid newspapers and the gossip magazines which splash features on celebrities' lifestyles and the latest news on who's sleeping with whom and who just broke up with who and which celebrity is so devastated that her husband left her for another woman (who is also a celebrity). AND WORSE, he's adopting a kid with her!.... And yadda yadda yadda... you get the drift. Is it the same thing?

In any case, this phenomenon has led to the shut down of many blogs... people who feel that their lives aren't private anymore blah blah blah... to which my only answer is: If that's how you feel, then why blog about your innermost thoughts in the first place? Blogs were never meant to be private. Whatever you decide to put out there for the world to see, be prepared for its consequences.