Be a Blogger

Do you have opinions? Strong ones? If you share them with family and friends, what’s your reach?

Just who the hell is Rush Limbaugh? Al Franken? What gives the New York Times the right to sole possession of your thoughts? The Wall Street Journal? USA Today? Do you always agree with the fair and balanced FOX News? You mean you agree with everything Lou Dobbs says about immigration and globalization? How about that local talk show host, does he speak for you? And that lady with the local cable access show, does she always have it right?

Of course you have thoughts and Constitutional right to express them. Sure you’ve had coffee and doughnuts with the same six people for the last twelve years. They know your opinion on everything and you know what they have to say about Bush, Iraq and Social Security. But who are you influencing?

While you’re mouthing off at the Dew Drop Inn, your State Rep and Congressman are letting lobbyists tell them what’s good for you. Do you suppose that’s really in your best interests? While you’re sipping java and banging your gums with Fred and Mildred, your Congressman’s sending your tax dollars to a thousand and one places you don’t want them to go.

A year and a half ago, I decided to fight for what I thought was right. Free Blogs became available, and while I’m a technical klutz, I decided to do battle. It took a little work and more than a few errors, but now I’m a blogger. I was always a writer of letters to editors and succeeded in getting quite a few missives printed – even in some big papers. But they can’t print everything you write; they have to spread the wealth and, besides, they’re paying people to follow their lead and think for you.

After these months, dear readers, I’ve worked like a dog to influence you and to change if you think I’m wrong – if I agree with the assessment. Blogging isn’t easy. If you don’t write regularly, your readers drift away. Without an editor, you’re bound to make mistakes – lots of them – and look like an ignoramus. But over time, if you try to be reasonable and consistent, you can spread your views. How far? How influentially? It’s impossible to say. There are a few clues to guide you. Every once in a while, Google – which supports my blog for free – tallies up the number of people who have explored my site, not just landed on the blog on purpose or by accident. A month or so ago, the number of people who read my profile came in at just under 500. I’m pretty sure it’s more than that by now, but Google doesn’t hurry even when major milestones are just waiting to be met.

I also put a counter on my blog to see how many people landed on it, but that’s imperfect since, among other things, it counts my own checks – several a day – to see if people are reading. I also have a fairly substantial list of folks to whom I send selected articles, so they often read the postings without being counted. Then there folks who get my writings automatically; they’re far too technically advanced for me and leave no finger prints.

So, after all this hand wringing, how many people read this blog? I don’t know. But with all the clues above and several others, it’s probably in the range of fifty to a hundred; double that is possible but that would be miraculous. Not a lot huh? For all the work thinking about a topic for the day and committing it to electronic pulses, that doesn’t seem like much.

But I’m a cup half full kind of person. My friends and I share our views and frustrations on a wide variety of subjects, and I’m sure there is some outside fertilization as a result of our regular interactions. But my – their - collective reach and influence on topics of interest and importance to me and us is extremely limited. Besides, I like writing my thoughts. Francis Bacon was correct when he said, “Reading maketh a full man; conference a ready man and writing an exact man.” Truly, forcing one’s self to write and publish positions on matters of controversy makes one as careful, precise and exact as possible. It clears the cobwebs of the mind.

So please dear readers, think about joining me in this venture. I’m quite sure that you either agree with almost all of my positions or are unalterably opposed to the content of my blog. Either way, by blogging along with me, the level of public discourse can be improved and expanded, and, even though in only a limited manner, our influence on those who would like to make us think correctly – as they see it - will be there and they willhave to account for us.

Blogging is far easier than most people believe. Start!

Blog on!

Wild Bill