I am new to Kos. I've only been here a week or so but what a jewel. It's an amazing amalgamate of progressive/liberal imagination and energy. As I try to wrap my brain around the incredible strangeness and power contained here, I can't help but wonder what it will evolve into in a year or two or three.
It's dynamic! It's raw energy, pouring out from a collective of people drawn together by their ideas, hopes and imagination. I've also found there's a lot of anger, cynasism and even a few paranoids here but that's a reasonably small group in comparison to the community as a whole.
But what a jewel! What a phenomenon!! It's so unusual among Democrats to have such a community. (remember the old quote from Will Rogers that he didn't belong to any organized political party...he was a Democrat!)
If I have any criticism of DKos it's that some in the community aren't very good at tolerance of dissenting ideas but I guess that's symptomatic of it's somewhat radicalized membership of frustrated activists. As a newcomer it becomes quickly apparent there's an undercurrent of hurt and hypersensitivity from some who seem to feel tired of being victims of compromised values and poor strategy from a failed Democratic leadership. And in part I agree with them. The Democratic Party leadership has been dismissive and contemptuous of them in the past but that's starting to change.
But clearly, you can tell something important is happening here. It's a fucking phenomenon!!
Progressive/Liberal Democrats have created an incredible power source of ideas and energy burning hot with enthusiasm from a disparit community at large...but now what? What is to be done with all that energy?
I think the most important next step that DKos could take would be to focus that energy like laser beam of organizing and activism toward agreed upon goals to move forward the progressive agenda...herein lies the rub.
Democrats are notoriously independent and hard to move in any one direction. Harnessing the many diverse passions that make up the Democratic electorate is historically difficult. This is one of things that makes our party great but is also one of our greatest challenges!
If it was possible to create an activist ethos here using organization techniques focused on accomplishing specific goals DailyKos could shake(or shape!)the world. Turn the power of the collective toward a specific goal and pursue it as a single powerful force and believe me things would change in a big hurry! Politicians, the media, even Republican and Independent voters would all understand that there is a new star forming in the firmament, that could give off a very bright light.
The challenge...how do you focus the un-focused power that is beginning to form here. Answer that question and this country will do an about-face so fast the Republicans heads will spin. Do this and progressive power will be a force to be reckoned with and DKos could well be it's beginning.