The blogoffect

Well, it's official. Most people seem to be crediting the blogosphere with having enabled Lamont's win (Waterbury Rep-Am, by Gennady Sheyner). And frankly, I tend to agree. I don't think it was bloggers in the voting booth who put Lamont over the top. But I do believe they were able to help spread a message... a message that would not have spread, if not for bloggers.

Heck, I think this blog helped me. It enabled me to immediately respond to statements / assertions made during the 89th primary campaign. And while this blog doesn't get thousands of visitors per day like CT Local Politics, it does get quite a few. And with only 700+ votes cast this past Tuesday, this blog may very well have a had a real impact on the primary. And regardless of the outcome, that's a good thing.

Blogs are a truly wonderful tool. They allow us to have a realtime, candid conversation without fear of any consequence. Obviously, we need to police ourselves and remain respectful of others. But still it provides us with a platform other than letters to the editor which are very good (and still much more widely read), but not immediate and often limited to a certain length.

Blogging empowers the voters. Blogging brings the 1st amendment to life. Blogging has changed the face of American politics for the better. Hopefully this is only the beginning.

Tim White
State Representative nominee (R-89)
Bethany, Cheshire & Prospect
TimWhite98@yahoo.com