If Lamont loses, we will be branded as ineffectual, irrelevant, extremist, and destructive. If Ned Lamont wins, we will be branded as powerful, relevant, extremist, and destructive. Both descriptions are inaccurate and unfair because this goes so far beyond the blogosphere, but if I have to choose I would much rather have the second one be the story. If we are going to get trashed and be forced to take credit for the fantastic work of others, I would at least like to get trashed as powerful and relevant. I do not know a single netroots leader that is not behind Ned Lamont in this campaign, but at the same time arguing hat we are driving this campaign is preposterous. Still, win or lose, the press will hit us with their hammerstroke, and as idiotic as that will be, that is also fine by me.
....this campaign could have been a lesson to the establishment media that the progressive netroots are just a subset of the progressive movement, just as the progressive blogosphere is a subset of the progressive netroots. The progressive blogosphere is only about one-third of the progressive netroots, and the progressive netroots are only about on-third of the progressive movement (and the progressive movement has grown to about half the size of the Democratic Party).They could have learned about all of this, and they could have learned that the Internet side of the operation basically just functions as another department in the campaign, just like field, communications and political are departments within campaigns. They could have learned this, and learned how this movement is just itching to become a supplement to the Democratic Party and progressive politics as a whole, rather than against it. They could have learned this, but they would rather blame the downfall of the Democratic Party entirely upon a small handful of national bloggers who gather for drinks at Sullivan's. They could have learned this, but they did not.
Markos of Daily Kos yesterday made a similar point yesterday in debunking the idea that he or bloggers in general had anything to do with Lamont's victory, if there is one.
To me, it's insulting and rude to the real heroes of the Lamont effort -- win or lose -- who have done ALL the work. I didn't make a single phone call, I didn't walk a single precinct, I didn't lick any envelopes, or staffed an information booth at the local farmer's market.
I wrote about the race and suddenly people want to give this blog (and me) all sorts of credit/blame. Only the laziest of lazy reporters and pundits can lay this at the feet of me or any other blogger.
....Riffing off Bower's post, the progressive blogosphere is only a subset of the netroots. The netroots includes MoveOn, DFA, Wikis, Podcasters, ActBlue, and every email listserv and Google/Yahoo Group focused on politics. And bloggers. That we get a disproportionate amount of media coverage is because of the "flavor of the month" thing we've got going. I sure as heck don't believe the hype.
In other words, it's not the bloggers, it's all of the netroots. It's people-powered politics.
So to reiterate -- all those people and organizations above worked their asses off for the Lamont campaign. I sat on my ass and wrote about it. I'm about as relevant to winning the Connecticut primary as the 101st Fighting Keyboardists are in winning the war in Iraq.
Give credit where it's due. The people-powered movement isn't about blogs. In fact, most of its foot-soldiers don't even know what a blog is. It's about creating a new political order in which ordinary people can take charge of their political destinies and do something to make their country a better place. They're the heroes in all of this.
