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The National Political Scene
Having lost the presidential election and lost ground in both the
U.S. House and Senate, just how deep do the misfortunes of the Democratic
Party go? Here’s what James Carville and Stanley Greenberg,
two top Democratic strategists/commentators, recently said: "But
on the key dimensions essential for the Democrats' re-emergence
as a dominant national force, the party falls woefully short. As
voters compare the parties, they see a Democratic Party without
purpose and defining ideas; a party not at all strong (weak politically,
without strong leaders and direction); not the go-to party on protecting
the country; ambivalent on basic values, like right and wrong and
responsibility; and only marginally ahead on advocacy for people,
being on their side." (Source: The Federalist Patriot)
Republicans also have their challenges. Conservative commentator
John Fund recently said this: "A Republican president sits
in the White House. The GOP enjoys clear majorities in both houses
of Congress. If now isn't the time to control federal spending,
when will it be?"
This Blogging Thing Might Catch On
Back in the early ‘90s, when the Internet was new but was obviously
going to have a real impact on society, I had a friend who used
to joke: “You know, this Internet thing just might catch on.” The
same might be said of blogging today.
Soon, many politicians and business leaders will have their own
blogs. Soon, there will be advocacy blogs (like the Legacy
Parkway Hotsheet on most of the major issues facing Utah. Soon,
there will be blogs serving as Utah news media watchdogs, criticizing
poor reporting and media bias. There will be highly specialized
Utah blogs on nearly every topic imaginable, including all sorts
of sports and hobbies.
The Tribune reported Wednesday about two new political blogs, the
Utah House Majority blog, written by Greg Curtis, Jeff Alexander,
Steve Urquhart and Ben
Ferry (nothing’s been posted yet) and Jeff Alexander’s personal
blog.
As the blogosphere develops, there will be some really good blogs,
and many more really bad ones. Blogging can make anyone a publisher,
but not everyone has interesting things to say. The trouble with
blogging is that it’s hard work, takes a lot of time, and is basically
a waste of time unless people are reading your blog. As in all things,
quality matters. To keep readers coming back, the writing has to
be compelling and insightful. I want to learn and gain insights
from a blog. I don’t want to waste my time reading something that
is boring, naïve or pedestrian. The good blogs will survive and
have an impact. Blogs will become another channel in the communications
game, and they will be taken seriously.
Blogs feed on each other. By linking to each other, the Utah political
blogs can keep traffic circulating. Utah Policy Daily will, of course,
continue to serve as a clearinghouse for Utah’s blogs, with frequent
links to compelling posts. We’ll use this newsletter that goes to
about 5,000 opinion leaders, to announce new blogs and we’ll keep
a list of relevant blogs on the Utah Policy Political Portal at
www.utahpolicy.com.
Utah Trivia
- Utah’s size is 84,900 square miles, which makes it the 11th
largest state in the country.
- Utah has 11,000 miles of streams and 147,000 acres of lakes
and reservoirs.
- Annual precipitation varies from less than five inches in the
arid Great Salt Lake Desert to more than 60 inches in the northern
mountain ranges.
Words to Live By
(This is for my 16-year-old daughter who procrastinates doing
homework until the wee hours of the night.) “Perhaps the most
valuable result of education is the ability to make yourself do
the thing you have to do, when it ought to be done, whether you
like it or not; it is the first lesson that ought to be learned;
and however early a man’s training begins, it is probably the last
lesson that he learns thoroughly.” – Thomas H. Huxley
"His integrity was most pure, his justice the most inflexible I
have ever known, no motives of interest or consanguinity, of friendship
or hatred, being able to bias his decision. He was indeed, in every
sense of the words, a wise, a good, and a great man." --Thomas
Jefferson on George Washington (Source: The Federalist
Patriot)
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