Saturday, October 28, 2006
Election Blogapalooza
Ah, the joys of blogging....
My sweet wife and I returned home from a week-long, much-needed vacation during which, I confess, I did manage to stay in touch with the political goings-on by checking the local newspapers online - and by checking the local blogs to see who was ticked off about what.
Tonight, before retiring, I fed my online habit by visiting the Daily Pilot online to see what the world will be told in print on Sunday. There, as the banner headline, is an article by Copy Editor Matt Ballinger entitled "Campaign Superhighway" which features some local bloggers (yours truly included) and speculates about the impact we might be having on the current campaigns here in Costa Mesa.
Since my bargain basement blog tool doesn't provide me with "hot link" capability, you'll have to click on my Useful Links page over to the left and, once there, click on the link for the Daily Pilot to read the article. I think you'll find it interesting.
Among the other bloggers mentioned are Byron de Arakal, who publishes his Itchingpost.com blog and does so with great skill and precision. As mentioned in Ballinger's piece, Byron's the reason I wrote my first letter to the Pilot, so please feel free to blame him if you don't like what you read here.
Another blogger mentioned by Ballinger is the person who publishes Goat Hill Harper under the pseudonym of Not Foolya. No one is quite sure of the identity of this blogger. Some, myself included, speculate that it might be another well known, controversial, wild-eyed, prolific blogger who uses this site as an outlet for his creative efforts after having popped a couple valium. Since he uses a variety of identities when he responds to correspondence, I guess we'll never know unless he exposes himself - so to speak. I hope we do learn his identity, because some of his stuff is pretty good.
Speak of the Devil, the remaining subject of the article is a very controversial gadfly (to use Ballinger's term) who very much resembles my theoretical character, Your Neighbor. This man, my own personal nominee for the Daily Pilot 103 (their list of most influential souls in our area) is, if nothing else, prolific. In fact, tonight - almost the instant this online article appeared - he fired off another blog entry to acknowledge it! Talk about quick on the draw! However, it must be noted that he apparently stuttered this evening, because his entry was posted twice, five minutes apart. Guess he wanted to be sure we saw it. As I've said many times in the past, this guy has never met a podium he wouldn't embrace - even one online.
There's no doubt in my mind about the influence that particular blog has on local politics. Ballinger's article quotes me as saying he's dangerous. I believe that to be the case. His racist views permeate everything he writes and, if you watch long enough, you can see how it forms the underpinning for most of his pronouncements at public forums, too. The campaigns of Mayor Mansoor and his campaign barnacle, Wendy Leece, reek of the stench of his personal philosophy. It's hard to get it out of your nostrils - kind of like when you run over a dead skunk on the road. Dangerous? Yeah, that's the right word.
I suppose one measure of the effectiveness of the blogs in question will occur on November 7th, when we find out whether the mayor and his running mate have managed to fool enough people with their anti-immigrant scare tactics to get elected.
So, I'm back... rested and ready for the home stretch. If recent postings are any indication, the next week is going to be very, very interesting in the wonderful world of Newport-Mesa Blogdom.
Keep reading, because I'm going to keep on writing and I'm sure all the others will, too. I suspect that, before the clock strikes midnight on November 7th, we all will have learned a little more about the candidates, their financing, their backers and those of us who try to influence opinion with the things we write. It promises to be a very entertaining week. Stay tuned.
11:51 pm pdt
My sweet wife and I returned home from a week-long, much-needed vacation during which, I confess, I did manage to stay in touch with the political goings-on by checking the local newspapers online - and by checking the local blogs to see who was ticked off about what.
Tonight, before retiring, I fed my online habit by visiting the Daily Pilot online to see what the world will be told in print on Sunday. There, as the banner headline, is an article by Copy Editor Matt Ballinger entitled "Campaign Superhighway" which features some local bloggers (yours truly included) and speculates about the impact we might be having on the current campaigns here in Costa Mesa.
Since my bargain basement blog tool doesn't provide me with "hot link" capability, you'll have to click on my Useful Links page over to the left and, once there, click on the link for the Daily Pilot to read the article. I think you'll find it interesting.
Among the other bloggers mentioned are Byron de Arakal, who publishes his Itchingpost.com blog and does so with great skill and precision. As mentioned in Ballinger's piece, Byron's the reason I wrote my first letter to the Pilot, so please feel free to blame him if you don't like what you read here.
Another blogger mentioned by Ballinger is the person who publishes Goat Hill Harper under the pseudonym of Not Foolya. No one is quite sure of the identity of this blogger. Some, myself included, speculate that it might be another well known, controversial, wild-eyed, prolific blogger who uses this site as an outlet for his creative efforts after having popped a couple valium. Since he uses a variety of identities when he responds to correspondence, I guess we'll never know unless he exposes himself - so to speak. I hope we do learn his identity, because some of his stuff is pretty good.
Speak of the Devil, the remaining subject of the article is a very controversial gadfly (to use Ballinger's term) who very much resembles my theoretical character, Your Neighbor. This man, my own personal nominee for the Daily Pilot 103 (their list of most influential souls in our area) is, if nothing else, prolific. In fact, tonight - almost the instant this online article appeared - he fired off another blog entry to acknowledge it! Talk about quick on the draw! However, it must be noted that he apparently stuttered this evening, because his entry was posted twice, five minutes apart. Guess he wanted to be sure we saw it. As I've said many times in the past, this guy has never met a podium he wouldn't embrace - even one online.
There's no doubt in my mind about the influence that particular blog has on local politics. Ballinger's article quotes me as saying he's dangerous. I believe that to be the case. His racist views permeate everything he writes and, if you watch long enough, you can see how it forms the underpinning for most of his pronouncements at public forums, too. The campaigns of Mayor Mansoor and his campaign barnacle, Wendy Leece, reek of the stench of his personal philosophy. It's hard to get it out of your nostrils - kind of like when you run over a dead skunk on the road. Dangerous? Yeah, that's the right word.
I suppose one measure of the effectiveness of the blogs in question will occur on November 7th, when we find out whether the mayor and his running mate have managed to fool enough people with their anti-immigrant scare tactics to get elected.
So, I'm back... rested and ready for the home stretch. If recent postings are any indication, the next week is going to be very, very interesting in the wonderful world of Newport-Mesa Blogdom.
Keep reading, because I'm going to keep on writing and I'm sure all the others will, too. I suspect that, before the clock strikes midnight on November 7th, we all will have learned a little more about the candidates, their financing, their backers and those of us who try to influence opinion with the things we write. It promises to be a very entertaining week. Stay tuned.
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