Lots of folks in Iowa and New Hampshire took their place at the table. Our democracy is vibrant with more people speaking than ever.
The signal development in this yet-young election cycle is the broad participation of so many Americans who are checking back in with democracy. Young and old, party affiliates and independents, participation is through the roof.
Party labels aren't as sticky as they have been in the past. Thank God we're moving beyond the days of party bosses anointing the candidate who we were expected to show up at the polls and reliably pull the lever for. People are not relying on party leaders to do their thinking for them. But party leaders and special interests still control the dollars which flow to "their" candidates. You can change that paradigm - through small dollar contributions to candidates. That's the future of campaign finance and will truly democratize the election process. Let's make it happen in larger numbers in 2008!
We are thinking for ourselves, and that is due in no small part to how you are reading this - on the internet. This medium demands you get involved - not as a passive recipient of information, but as an active player, sharing news, views and contacts.
If the medium is truly the message then logging on and checking in are one and the same. "Log on - feed in -speak out." It's a perfect metaphor for democracy in the 21st century.
We are just beginning to see the power of this new model of communication, not a top-down, receive-only broadcast model, but a bottom-up, send-and-receive peer-to-peer model.
Democracy only works if people participate. And the prerequisite to participating is believing you can make a difference. Voters have been lulled into believing they are powerless, can't make a difference, can't fight city hall. The not-at-all subtle subtext to Ronald Reagan's message "government is not the solution to our problem, government is the problem" was 'don't bother to participate in politics.' Political hacks and their "I want my payback" corporate and special interest benefactors have done fine by fewer voters - for a smaller electorate is easier to manipulate.
But American democracy is waking up from a long sleep. We are citizens in a democracy, not consumers in a market, and we have the power to challenge and change the status quo. Take hold of the lever you have as a citizen of this republic. Organize, volunteer, contribute, blog and vote.
And, in that spirit, I hope it is not inappropriate to plug our own efforts in that regard. We've launched a grass-roots fundraiser for my campaign for the U.S. Senate: 10 For Jim - Pocket Change For Positive Change. On that web page, you can contribute $10 via ActBlue, create your own 10 for Jim fundraiser page, and download web "badges" to promote it.
In Iowa and New Hampshire we see the people are finding their voice - and that is, arguably, the story of this election year.
Keep it up. We are going to make history in 2008 - the year in which peoples' hopes will be expressed through their power to change.