I’m told that in his book, The Assault on Reason, Al Gore sets out his hopes that the internet will eventually become a free forum for legitimate and intelligent political discourse, to counteract the mindless spin and drama-seeking chicanery so well showcased at last Wednesday’s presidential “debate.” While Avenue Q imagines a… somewhat different destiny for the internet, I’m an optimist. While the internet may never become a thriving polity – as science fiction authors like Dan Simmons (Hyperion) and Orson Scott Card (Ender’s Game) imagine – I think it already is providing a valuable alternative source of information, with responsible sites such as MediaMatters in the lead.
Equally important, I think, are sites dedicated to discussing important issues in a polite manner. “The Big Talk” is one of them, and I wish it all the best. The site chooses important topics and gathers responses from varied individuals. The replies to questions, such as, “What is God?”, range from the absurd to the brilliant, and that’s precisely the point.
The marketplace of ideas demands that citizens have the urge and the means to contribute their points of view, and influence their fellow citizens, with minimal intrusion and transaction costs. A glance at corporate-dominated media giants quickly gives a fairly grim picture of our own marketplace, but maybe we have a ray of hope.
I’m an Obama supporter. At least I used to be. More and more recently, Obama has been putting his foot in his mouth. I won’t recite how he’s been doing that. But.
There’s one thing the Democrats, my party, has never done well, and that’s political symbolism. Ever since the founding of the Republic, presidential and senatorial candidates have relied upon a couple tried and true images to win election. Among them – and these will sound familiar – we have the Washington Outsider, the Humble Cincinattus, the Rustic Idealist, and the Rebuilder.
Watch this speech, where Barack Obama hits strongly upon several of these themes. From the placard – “Reclaiming America” – to the reference to Hillary as someone who does things as they’re “done in Washington,” to the casual use of popular music, Obama reads squarely from the playbook of American history.
These are lessons the Democrats need to learn. Kerry and Gore were systematically outmaneuvered in 2000 and 2004 while trying to claim these images as their own. They failed to seize the ground against a candidate who, if the truth behind the spin came out couldn’t satisfy a single one himself, and defeat was the consequence. I’m not sure if Obama will be, or should be, the nominee anymore. But whether or not he is, his technique should be watched carefully, and emulated.
And perhaps added to.
Our “About” page defines the general goal of our site – a new perspective, among others, on progressive politics. But specifically, what can you expect from us?
The short answer is, probably, “different things.” This site is designed to have several different contributors, all working towards a common goal.
For my part, though, for the immediate future, you can expect a focus on the upcoming general election, with analysis, strategies, and spin designed to secure a Democratic victory in November. Additionally, with the release of Ben Stein’s “documentary,” Expelled, you can expect some posts on the subject of “intelligent design,” and how politics has distorted science to serve the ends of the religious right.
I hope you enjoy the site.
