We stand at a pivotal moment for all conservatives in America. In the past, social conservatives, fiscal conservatives and pro-military Republicans banded together and elected Ronald Reagan as a standard-bearer for our vision. Since then, we have “held our noses” while voting for a string of moderates: President George H.W. Bush (in two elections), Bob Dole and two elections with President George W. Bush. [It is important to note that many conservatives thought they were electing a kindred spirit in George W. Bush. Time (and a few trillion dollar programs) has proven this hope to be quite misplaced.
But the true conservatives in America now have a chance to consider who they truly are – and what kind of future they will strive to build. It is time to reject the pleas of political party leaders who urge us to elect someone who is “acceptable enough” for them. Don’t misunderstand me. I am not suggesting that we vote for Obama. Heaven forbid. Nor am I suggesting that we not vote for McCain. That choice must be made in the solitude of the voting booth. Instead, I want us to be prepared for a future that I fear awaits us.
In fairness, liberal Democrats have been waiting for their chance to shape the future of America. They have waited since Hubert Humphrey and since George McGovern. Carter was not a liberal Democrat. He was an ineffective moderate who was ill-prepared to lead this nation. And Clinton was definitely not a liberal Democrat. He was a calculating and politically successful pragmatist. And for the last eight (8) years, liberal Democrats have had to wait through successive Republican victories for their next chance. But now, liberals can rejoice as they are on the cusp of achieving a watershed change – albeit with a stealth candidate.
And conservatives should take heart from the example of the long-suffering liberal Democrats. Since Ronald Reagan left office, the Republican party has been led by moderates, pragmatists and more than a couple of scoundrels. Some might argue that there have been conservative Republicans in power. And this is true. But at the highest levels of government, conservatism has not been practiced for a very long time.
Indeed, it is absurd for anyone to think that George W. Bush was a conservative. He and his Administration have been responsible for several of the largest government expansions ever. This includes the following major “accomplishment”: the largest health care program ever (in the form of prescription drug coverage), and the largest governmental takeover of private property ever (in the form of the most recent mortgage bailouts).
Similarly, liberal Democrats have had to “hold their noses” while Clinton systematically dismantled the programs of the Great Society. They saw welfare programs disassembled in favor of pay-for-work programs. And liberals have seen affirmative action and social justice programs transformed into watered down versions of the original programs launched in the sixties.
On the cusp of the most dramatic shift in the political landscape since Reagan, conservative Republicans need to reflect upon what is still to be done – not what will be undone in a liberal administration. We need to be energized by the things they truly believe in. Indeed, we need to learn not to settle for “good enough.” We need to strive towards the unassailable goals of limited government and personal responsible. In my mind, the best palliative for a possible liberal victory is in knowing that we can survive exile under a “liberal tyrant” – just as we survived the tyrannies of George III. We can survive the tyrannies of a liberal Congress just as we survived the tyrannies of fascism and communism last century. And we can emerge from such an exile with a renewed fervor for the things that really matter.
In many ways, we must be forced to realize the errors of our ways. Like a repentant sinner sitting in the pews, the conservative culture in America must “step forward” and admit its sins. We must ask for forgiveness from our fellow Americans. Indeed, we have not given our best. We have been willing to settle for “good enough.” We have been willing to compromise our very essence. But that time is over. Like the repentant sinner, we must first confess – and then we must put our new-found commitment into action. We must decline the temptations to seek minor advances via compromise. Instead, we must stick to our principles and forge ahead – despite the short-term costs.
If we don’t win next Tuesday, let’s welcome the crucible of the wilderness. It is there where God molds prophets and leaders. We must seek to build a moral argument that was plainly understood by our founders: “Government, even in its best state, is but a necessary evil; in its worst state, an intolerable one.” (Thomas Paine)
Month: October 2008
From Vanity to Transformative Energy
It has been invigorating – and startling – to see how social networking has been used during this election cycle. When our presidential campaign began (over two years ago), the pinnacle of Internet technology (in politics) was the static website, the email distribution list and the online cash register. Basically, it was a testament to first-generation web technologies. Yes, there were exceptions (like some of the forays of Howard Dean’s 2004 campaign). But the de rigeur Internet investments were fairly pedestrian.
Since the last presidential election cycle, there has been a whole lot of maturing that has occurred. First, the technology itself has matured. We have gone from unidirectional content publishing to multi-channel advertising and bi-directional communications and involvement. Today, a supporter can subscribe to any number of channels and/or feeds that interest them. Followers can: provide their email address, read a candidates’ positions published on a website (or on Facebook or MySpace), or even see speeches on YouTube. Most politicians have a presence on Twitter (or Friendfeed, if they are truly forward-thinking). In short, politicians have many ways of getting their message to current and future supporters.
And this is a great start. But to go from broadcasting information to building a community of involved activits, a candidate must successfully blend Web 2.0 technologies with some personal “connection” to his or her supporters.
Like Howard Dean before him, Barack Obama has been able to capitalize on personal charisma and a fundamental “distrust of the older generation” to build his support base. If you are active on Twitter, it doesn’t take long to see the “personal” attachment that people have with Obama – regardless of the positions that he espouses. Indeed, I have seen many “conservative” people who have decided to vote for Obama because he has “connected” with them on more than a policy level. In many ways, this sense of connectedness is the same thing that Ronald Reagan was able to do with the “Reagan Democrats” during the 1980 campaign.
On the flip-side, John McCain has had little success achieving a sense of connectedness with his supporters. Most of his supporters are not “connected” to him or the campaign. Rather, they currently support McCain because they oppose Obama. In many cases, Republicans support McCain as their second choice candidate; many Huckabee, Romney and Giuliani supporters are only grudging supporters of McCain. And in many ways, this is so reminiscent of the 1976 campaign where many conservatves only grudgingly supported the candidacy of Gerald Ford.
But there have been two events that have altered the course of the McCaign campaing. The first was the nomination of Sarah Palin as the party’s vice presidential candidate. In many ways, Sarah has been able to “connect” to dissatisfied and disillusioned Republicans. At the same time, she has been able to reach a number of independent voters. Much of this reach beyond the party failthful is due to her energy, vitality and personal attractiveness. Indeed, she has been able to reach many people on a personal level. Indeed, many of the GOP faithful talk about their support for her rather than their support of McCain.
The second event was the elevation of Joe the Plumber. Through an odd set of circumstances, an “everyman” in Ohio has captured the hearts of many Americans. Many folks see him (or the ideal he symbolizes) as someone who represents their interests. They saw an indifferent Obama making decisions that will fundamentally alter their futures. And many folks don’t like that. Uncertainty often breeds the kind of fear that can affect elections. And the Joe the Plumber issue has created a great deal of uncertainty about Obama.
Fundamentally, both events demonstrate the simple fact that people want to support the familiar. They want to connect with their leaders. When McCain can offers two surrogates for their need to connect, many folks will gravitate towards those surrogates. When Obama offers himself as the person that can relate to mainstream America, then the polls swing in his favor. In short, people want to connect with their leaders.
And modern technology is all about “connectedness” and community. When systems and technolgoies draw folks together, they foster this spirit of community. And most Americans will willingly invest in communities of shared interests – whether they be Sunday School classes, churches, local school booster clubs or even political parties. People want to belong. And they will work for that sense of belonging.
In many ways, the use of technology in politics has finally moved from Web 1.0 to Web 2.0. In the first generation, technology was used to fulfill the vanity of the candidate (or his/her followers). But with the advent of social networking and Web 2.0, we are truly seeing involvement of the citizens – and unleashing of their effort and energies.
In the final analysis, we have been created with a need to join together and serve one another. The rock band Switchfoot says it well: “We were meant to live for so much more; have we lost ourselves?” There is a fundamental part of the human heart that needs to be part of something bigger than our own selfish interests. We want to tell our children and our grandchildren how we were part of something transformative. Indeed, I believe that this is part of what made “the greatest generation” so great: they overcame econmic hardships as well as the tyrranies of totalitarian dictators. They were transformed from their pety and selfish concerns into a community of shared purpose and vision.
In politics, we can reach beyond ourselves – if we try. And with technology, we can reach others in amazing and innovative ways. But it is not the method that matters. In the end, it is the message that must transform us. In our current election, I pray that everyone takes a step back and asks whether they are supporting the position or the package. If we are supporting the package, please understand that we are often disappointed when we unwrap a package and learn that it is not everything that we had hoped for. Nevertheless, the act of reaching beyond yourself is one of the most transformative acts you will ever intitiate.
So get involved. Think and pray about your vote. And always remember to be grateful for the awesome privilege of getting to decide your own future.
Chumming for Mad Props
I’ve been in IT for many years. And through most of those years, I have striven for excellence in both form and function. I have striven for the recognition of subordinates, peers and superiors. But in all things, I have sought recognition of personal excellence. And like most folks, we are happiest when we believe folks recognize our talents – and applaud them in one way or another.
So what does that have to do with social networking and/or the nascent technologies of today? Simply put, it has everything to do with it. As some of you know, I am a music aficionado. OK, a better word would be neophyte. I love music – of all kinds. But I am utterly talentless when it comes to music. I know what I like to hear. But I could not reproduce any such sounds using only my own abilities. So I am comfortable simple listening t music. I love being transported to different places. And I love being inspired to become greater than I am.
Modern technology lets me listen to almost any music. And it lets me share music. So everyone must be saying “Lorin, you must be using Last.fm.” And everyone would be right. I do like Last.fm. But it is a service that catalogs what I listen to and then distributes that information to other platforms (e.g., Twitter, etc). It can also be used to “share” music with others – although you should only share those things that you own the copyright for. Otherwise, expect a knock on the virtual or physical door from the RIAA and the newly empowered Pro-IP cabinet leadership (once selected by our next President).
But I’m wanderign off topic. Last.fm has a lot of great featrues. But I think of Last.fm in the same way I think of blogging: it is rich – and somewhat cumbersome. What we really need is a micro-blogging annalog to music. Enter the Blip.fm service.
Blip.fm has lots of capabilities. And it would take far too much time to list and explain them all. But one feature is truly compelling: the notion of public praise. Blip.fm promotes the notion that their community “rates” its membership. Members can “listen” to favorite DJ’s. This is an analog to the Twitter following that a user collects. And members can give “props” (tokens of virtual respect/attention) to one another.
OK, this sounds pretty mundane. But just like some folks on Twitter “whore” their postings for followers (er, stop thinking about Jason Calacanis or Robert Scoble), Dj’s can position themselves to gain “respect” through both followers and props. In many ways, this kind of competitiveness drives lots of folks.
But Blip.fm adds just a little more to the equation. Not only do you want to have followers and props, but you also want some visible/public recognition of your talents. In the case of Blip.fm, DJ’s can receive “stars” (virtual badges of success). These are based upon the number of listeners you have attained. And it is amazing to see just how much a little star can push your behavior. I kept posting until I gained my first level of public acknowledgment (the silver star of 50 listeners). It amazes me how a cynical curmudgeon like me can be motivated by a little star. That simple validation subtly altered my activity within the Blip.fm community.
At first, I just “blipped” (i.e., referenced) favorite songs. But everyone does that. And most of the songs I “blipped” had already been “blipped” by others. So I started to look for an “angle” whereby I could gain the attention of others.
At first I focused upon Christian music. That gained me some listeners. But that community is smaller than the general population of Blip.fm. So for that strategy to work, I would need to invite a whole lot of friends who shared my love of contemporary Christian music. It was a good idea – but it would require a huge investment of time. And I wanted more immediate results.
So I took a different approach. I decided to become a purveyor of cover songs. And this niche worked quite well. I’ve been linking to famous covers and/or famous originals with infamous covers. And there is a lot of fertile ground in that vein. So I’ve plumbed Wikipedia, Last.fm and my love of diverse musical genres to build a unique meme for myself.
And I am now a DJ with sufficient listeners to have achieved my first level of recognition: the silver star. But there are multiple levels of “stardom” in the Blip.fm universe. And I feel a compulsion to achieve higher levels of recognition. If it were anyone but myself, I would call such a person a hapless “tool.”
But my situation proves a point: social networks will become more successful when creators find means in which to actively challenge their members. And simple (and visible) tokens of appreciation and/or expertise can have an inordinate affect on members. Build systems that reward members. And build systems that pulicly praise your members. It will spawn more active and more devoted communities.
-Roo
If you’re interested by what you’ve read, check out the YouTube video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MuOL3JhPcBw
Google Reader: Three Years and I’m Finally Hooked
In October 2005, Google Reader was launched. And last week, I finally decided to start using Google Reader in earnest. I did this because Noah has been pestering me about it for a while. At the same time, I got curious about the iGoogle changes that were being launched. So I decided to look at both iGoogle and Google Reader.
After three years of using Mozilla’s Live Bookmarks (in Firefox), I’ve come to realize that client-based bookmarks and readers have one big flaw: they are immobile. Google Reader wins because it is network-centric. When I log onto any of the half-dozen systems I routinely use, I can reach the feeds that I am interest in. And I can share these with anyone that wants to see my interests. In short, Google Reader can be part of a portable experience that is not location dependent. In addition, it is part of a much more social experience on the web.
I’ve started to use the RSS feed aggregation, Google Talk integration, and bookmark sharing capabilities of the the product. Right now, my list of friends is small but growing. Once I can seamlessly use my friends and followers from other sources (like Twitter, Last.fm, blip.fm, Friendfeed and ident.ca) then this service will rock.
But for now, my reach is somewhat limited. If you are interested in seeing my shared items in Google Reader, then look me up at cyclingroo@gmail.com.
-Roo
Google Reader: Three Years and I'm Finally Hooked
In October 2005, Google Reader was launched. And last week, I finally decided to start using Google Reader in earnest. I did this because Noah has been pestering me about it for a while. At the same time, I got curious about the iGoogle changes that were being launched. So I decided to look at both iGoogle and Google Reader.
After three years of using Mozilla’s Live Bookmarks (in Firefox), I’ve come to realize that client-based bookmarks and readers have one big flaw: they are immobile. Google Reader wins because it is network-centric. When I log onto any of the half-dozen systems I routinely use, I can reach the feeds that I am interest in. And I can share these with anyone that wants to see my interests. In short, Google Reader can be part of a portable experience that is not location dependent. In addition, it is part of a much more social experience on the web.
I’ve started to use the RSS feed aggregation, Google Talk integration, and bookmark sharing capabilities of the the product. Right now, my list of friends is small but growing. Once I can seamlessly use my friends and followers from other sources (like Twitter, Last.fm, blip.fm, Friendfeed and ident.ca) then this service will rock.
But for now, my reach is somewhat limited. If you are interested in seeing my shared items in Google Reader, then look me up at cyclingroo@gmail.com.
-Roo
Resuscitation
‘Roo-minations is about a man who died and came back to life (through CPR and through an ICD). And my blogging has been dead for almost two years. What happened? Well, I spent a year at Microsoft. In that time, I tied to drink the Koolaid. But MSN Spaces just doesn’t cut it. And I discontinued my Blogger account due to Microsoft’s antipathy towards Google. When I quit Blogger, squatters took over.
Well, I’m now back from the dead. My heart has been restarted by a new job and a renewed joi de vivre – plus the addition of lots of new tools (like Twitter and Blip.fm). So I’ll restart my blog back where everything began: WordPress. Over the next few months, I’ll be hosting this site elsewhere. But for now, I’m here and I’m excited to be back in business.
