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It's
a fact, 80 percent of today's younger generation
receives news from the Internet.
A
few months ago, The Washington Post wrote,
"On-line views and visitor action is precisely
measured, not a game of divination from print
circulation. Technology is increasingly allowing us
to synch our news or wirelessly receive it."
"Bloggers
are slowly rendering the influence of weekly
newspapers obsolete."
Printed
newspapers are becoming dinosaurs. (Read more about
it: "Is
Print Dead? The Washington Post Ponders It".)
Blog addiction
is becoming more and more a fact of modern life.
In
the case of several newer Web logs based in the
Commonwealth, the blog is nothing more than an
extension of the candidate's campaign Web page.
Like
I said in a column last week (Looking
for a few good blogs), some blogs are veiled and
done anonymously ... and I say these politicos are
hiding their identities for obvious reasons.
The
Blue Dog requested information from multiple
statewide bloggers about their Blogfodder entries.
Here's
the Blue Dog's Golden Rule of Blogging: If you post
the blog anonymously, the Blue Dog will question you
anonymously - and I will respond in-kind with deadly
cutting edge sarcasm.
I
say ... please admit to your blog, or submit to blog
criticism.
The
curious questions I asked these political blog
authors: Where is the blog page based - i.e.
residency in the Commonwealth? What are your
political issues? What is your party affiliation?
And are you connected to a statewide candidate's
campaign?
Some
bloggers vehemently objected to the Dog's queries,
and some responded truthfully ... while other only
eviscerated the Blue Dog's integrity and political
values.
(Now
that's called kicking the Dog's constitutional
rights!)
For
the record: Only a true blogger will leave his or
her real identity. All this stealth action is
nothing more than the Shenandoah Valley chicken
cha-cha farmers spread on the local fields. A smile,
handshake and a knife in the back sounds just like
Southern Democratic tactical warfare to me.
It's
so easy to hit and run.
In
the past week, the Blue Dog's e-mail account
suffered multiple cyber-attacks from virus
attachments along with nasty e-mails and caustic
phone calls after making initial contact with some
of the more unprofessional, amateur Blog-Fascists
and Blog-Marxists that I queried.
But
I was warned: Be careful in what you tell them ...
because they'll turn it on you at the first chance,
since nobody who associates with them really deals
with them on any personal level.
The
Blue Dog freely admits that I probably pushed a
little too hard with a few bloggers.
And
then became blogtroversial with my pointed and
questionable postings, which eventually snowballed
into a blog free-for-all and blog gang-tackle
affair. And in fact, I was later blamed for
instigating the whole enchilada with a member of the
Republican Party.
But
I say blame a certain pseudonymous writer from the
Valley, because it was not I who continued the local
blogtroversy.
After
a few days, I stopped posting on the blogs with
these political rookies and debutantes and
troublemakers after remembering New York Times columnist
William Safire's fourth and 12th rules to political
pundit writing.
Fourth
rule:
"When infuriated by an outrageous column, do
not be suckered into responding with an abusive
e-mail. Pundits so targeted thumb through these
red-faced electronic missives with delight, saying
'Hah! Got to 'em.' "
Twelfth
rule:
"Scorn personal exchanges between columnists.
Observers presuming to be participants in debate
remove the reader from the reality of controversy;
theirs is merely a photo of a painting of a statue,
or a towel-throwing contest between fight managers.
Insist on columns taking on only the truly powerful,
and then only kicking 'em when they’re up."
Doesn't
it just figure! I had a nice bout of the flu bug to
deal with as well.
There
I was ... smack dab in the middle of a local
dogfight with a high fever.
Phew!
But thank goodness! The Dog's PC was spared the
virus attacks.
After
that, the Blue Dog was officially down and out of
circulation the entire week (remember, I didn't
publish my columns one week) because this Old
Dawg probably has one of those dreaded
third-world-incubated viral bugs.
But
at the end of the week, the Blue Dog managed to
interview two campaign media directors that have
recently set up political blogs in the Commonwealth.
Both
are Democrats bloggers and agreed to speak off the
record about their Web logs.
They
cautiously admitted the blogs were set up indirectly
to promote campaigns. Both cleverly said the blogs
were discussing the merits of free speech along with
local, state and national issues.
Curious
political spin, don't you agree? But this took a
while to sink in as well.
After
searching extensively on the 'Net, I discovered more
than obvious connections with Virginia House of
Delegates and Senate campaigns. The Blue Dog did his
Internet searches on Google along with
making a few phone calls to key political sources in
the Commonwealth.
The
Blue Dog also noticed that the owner of a Democrat
PAC had worked on some of these Web sites.
Maybe
its high-time bureaucrat Chris Piper with the
Virginia State Board of Elections did something
about these anonymous blogs.
Blogs
for U
Hey,
folks, the 'Net is a great forum for ideas and
campaigns (if legally done).
In
2003, a former GOP state chair told me I ran the
best Internet campaign against a Senate opponent
that he had ever seen and that I had
practically rewritten the rules of engagement
on the 'Net (with the State Board of Elections'
disclaimers attached).
It
was a nice compliment from the other side of the
political aisle, but winning the state senate
election might have been nicer.
Since
last year, the Blue Dog has made it a habit to pan
thru the political blogs daily for rumors and news
that are not in newsprint. But most of the statewide
pages are strictly an amateur-hour blogs and
heart-wrenching blogaries, which are combination Web
logs and teen diaries.
The
Blue Dog's top 10 Virginia political Web log sites:
1.
Sic
Semper Tyrannis (best blog in the state)
2.
The Virginia
Conservative (very close second)
3.
Bacon's
Rebellion
4.
Raising
Kaine (best Democratic blog)
5.
Waldo Jaquith
6.
Commonwealth
Watch
7.
One
Man's Trash
8.
SW Virginia
Law
9.
Virginia
Progressive
10.
Rick
Sincere Thoughts
Like
I said, there are many other Web log sites, but
they're not worth my time and effort.
Most
of these anonymous individuals tend only to
blogicate, which is to copy Web log postings and
newspaper articles and then over- or under-simplify
the issues with a few lame comments and uninformed
commentary. And these blogs are only concerned with
promoting their personal Web sites or pet issues and
then pencil-whipping the opposition into submission.
The
Blue Dog recommends the Bacon's Rebellion site,
which includes certifiable wonks from the Republican
and Democratic parties along with some interesting
discussions on the issues.
Unlike
those under the radar bucks and does of the 'Net who
choose to blog anonymously, the Blue Dog blogflogs
on the Bacon's Rebellion site under my real
name and not some alias or anonymous posting.
The
Blue Dog has an overflowing backblog of antidotes
and articles and posting that I intend to eventually
write about in the Blue Dog Tales column.
But those darn blogs have really cut into my
publishing productivity and time at home.
There's
no doubt, the Blue Dog is definitely hooked on
blogflogging.
I
blog, therefore, I am.
And
there are plenty of political blogs that are popping
up in the Old Dominion to scrutinize - some 'Pub,
some Dem, some gay, some Libertarian, some
bipartisan and some are just plain weird fodder from
Planet Nine.
Yes,
you can also become one of the few, the proud, the
bloggers of America.
Just
watch out for the blogaches, which are brought on by
too much Internet blogging, not enough sleep.
Has
anybody seen my aspirin?
--
April 11, 2005
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