Why I support Howard Dean, and why you should, too
Part I: Why so early?

The 2004 presidential election is like forever away from now, you’re thinking, so how come this guy has already picked a horse to bet on? In this mixed-up world of Blogland, so many people have already settled on favorites, which, to the casual observer, might seem premature. But I think it actually makes perfect sense at this stage for so many of us to be on board a particular candidate’s wagon train.

So today, before I get into the nuts and bolts of my support for Howard Dean, I present three reasons why I—and other bloggers—have already lined up behind a candidate.

1. Bloggers are, by nature, early adopters. Now we find out it applies to presidential candidates as well as technology trends. I think bloggers are the type, by and large, to get excited about new things, to research new ideas thoroughly if quickly, form conclusions, and jump into new movements way ahead of the rest of the world.

And when bloggers jump, they do not equivocate; when was the last time you read a blogger saying, “Gee, um, gosh, I don’t know about this, uh, I have to think about it for a while"? Blogging has done for opinion-writing what email did to letter writing. Where once upon a time, writing to someone was a chore that required careful thought, a couple of good pens, and a stack of pretty stationery, now we have email, which most of us dash off without a second thought or, God forbid, proofreading for typos (heck, instant messaging has normed typos!). Once upon a time a columnist or commentator would ponder the world and take the time to write 700 words, the re-write it and revise it, and send it in, where an editor would work on it, too. Now, though, blogger has thought, blogger types thought, blogger posts thought; elapsed time: 9 minutes.

Which brings us back to the campaign: The bloggers are early adopters of their candidates and, by virtue of their quick-post nature, they are also adamant defenders of their candidate.

Howard Dean, as the candidate most wisely using the internet right now, is therefore making the most inroads with bloggers. Sure, other candidates have bloggers in their corners, but spend a day surfing from liberal blog to liberal blog (come on, it’s what I do!) and you’ll see that Dean is very well represented.

I should say, before I move on to point two in this post, that I actually came to blogging backwards. I found Howard Dean first (that’s all explained in Part II of this series) and then found blogs. I mean, I knew about blogs, but the extent of the blogging world surprised me and drew me in. So, unlike other bloggers who convert to Howard Dean, I was a Deanista who converted to blogging.

2. The Democratic primary fight at this point is not actually a fight for the hearts and minds of Joe and Joann Democrat. Yes, Joe and Joann will need to be on board in order for any one candidate to have a shot, but right now, no candidate is doing the one thing that appeals most to Joe and Joann: Television. Word on the street is that Edwards may be planning TV, but the word on other parts of the street is that Edwards is on his way out of the campaign.

Without television, there’s no one learning about the candidates except people who want to find out, and they are the ones the campaigns are after. There is time later to sway the others, but the primary fight right now is for activists, campaign staff, big-money donors, and high-profile endorsements. We in Blogland fit neatly into the first of those categories, but less so into the last three (oh, to be in the last two!). So in Blogland, we’re starting to line up behind the candidates we like, and, as we are not Joe and Joann Democrat, it’s okay.

3. Finally, liberal bloggers are angry. Remember talk radio in the 90s? Who am I kidding, talk radio hasn’t changed a bit. Notice how angry the right-wing talkers are, and especially try to remember the ferocity with which they attacked Clinton during his presidency. Well, blogging is our talk radio. There is no outlet for our rage at the present administration except for the internet. Look around TV. Listen to your radio. Check your daily papers. There’s nothing! And that’s why we’ve taken refuge in Blogland.

But, you may ask, don’t the conservatives blog too? And aren’t they also angry? Yes, it’s true, and, though I don’t fool around much with the right shore of Blogland, reports I’ve read indicate that it’s a bigger territory than we liberals have carved out. But the key point is that the left shore of this Blogland is growing, and I think—no, I’m pretty sure I know—that we are angrier. Part of that may be, I admit, that we have a narrow, focused target, which is what the right-wingers had during the Clinton and years and what they really lack now. But whatever the reason, our anger and discontent is growing.

Tomorrow: More on the angry factor

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