I'm writing this in response to
nyeve's diary "Come to Kos, learn why Dems lose elections"
I fully agree with nyeve on this: "....it withers my brain to witness the human hours, the energy, the time, committed democrats have used to hurl insults at each other. Support or criticize, do whatever you want. But have any of you asked yourselves is this the best use of my time, energy and resources? "
At the end of this diary, there's a POLL : How much time do you spend here on the Daily Kos compared to time you spend doing Non-Internet political work ?
This dairy is my self-help whack in the head - so I can remember to keep things in proportion - and maybe it could serve as yours too. The basic distinction I'd like to make is this : the Daily Kos can be an organizing tool, and a good read, or it can be your latest addiction, your pathology masquerading as politics, your imagined "action" that actually does little and goes nowhere or - worse - and simply causes a pointless collective online churning of disputes, debates, tirades, epithets, tantrums, and flamouts.
Outside your door, beyond the glowing screen : Democracy
Will we choose to avoid excessive time writing, commenting, insulting, and bickering with each other and get out the door to actually do politics, local politics rather than simply yakking about national issues we have relatively little impact on ?
Now, I'm not talking about front page posters on the DailyKos here - although I wouldn't mind seeing them provide the leadeship of some gentle guidance, to steer people here towards pragmatic action and away from needless bickering and internet churn. But, the function of the front page posters here is different from that of we who merely post "diaries" :
The front page posters on the Daily Kos are addressing a national stage. That is their role - notice, however, that they often address local state elections as well In terms of national/state focus there is a mix - and, notice, Markos kept electoral politics as the touchstone for this site by his detailed commentaries on local races .
But, by following that lead so slavishly, and addressing so often the national stage - or the latest scandal - diarists here on the Daily Kos, it seems to me, miss out on real, crucial political work they might do. Where is the focus - among the DailyKos rank and file - on issues we can actually DO something about ?
Markos Moulitsas has ascended to a national stage - fine. But those on this site who generate endless fusillades of op-ed pieces on national politics might consider the possibility of channeling that energy in a direction that might have some concrete impact : state level politics.
State level politics might not seem so grand, but - I guarantee - your power, and mine, to effect change at that level dwarfs any diffuse power we might somehow wield by lofting diaries up the recommended list.
For all the time many of us spend here on the Daily Kos, tapping away, bickering in hot debate, we could manage political campaigns or even run for political office. We can churn out endless torrents of words ( I do it too! ) to impress people we'll likely never meet or we can get out the door, meet people, shake their hands, look them in the eye, and work with them towards shared political goals, or listen to their concerns, share ours, and work to change their beliefs.
The Internet's great - but, I'm not a virtual person. Whether this site functions to vacuum up progressive energy to little effect or whether we use the Daily Kos wisely - as a resource, a place for solidarity, and an organizing tool - is up to us. So, what's it going to be ?
This dairy is a riff off nyeve's post today and also off my diary I posted yesterday - which launched from the experience of my first political caucus :
" Yesterday, I did something new, something I've never done before.
Rather than reading and commenting online, I was one of many new activists who got out the door to attend Massachusetts Democratic Party caucuses around the state. I wasn't elected as a delegate....But, I got my ass out the door. It was a good thing to do."