Mark Phillips: The American Question

Political blogs are now commonplace. Most political bloggers are traditional editorialists, presenting opinions and commentary in more reasoned or less reasoned forms.

Trouble-Tickets' blogs began with similar intentions. We have a point of view about patriotism, democracy, and our country's identity, which leads us to strenuously oppose the so-called War on Terror as incompetent, immoral, and against the best interests of our people.

We're starting now to move away from blogging as commentary, toward a new style of blogging which we're making up as we go along. Our new pieces are more focused than before on strategy, and they're more explicitly informed by particular theoretical points of view. In some ways our little group is the product of a specific American historical and theoretical experience in the 1970s and 1980s. I guess what I'm saying is that we're becoming more comfortable with that. One result is that we're trying to figure out how to take the blogging medium seriously as a canvas for a new kind of contribution with its own formal integrity.

I don't mean this as the royal "we"! Ted and I very much hope to involve our wider circle of friends and colleagues, many of whom share our theoretical and political formation in the movements that we grew up in. You know who you are! We're confident you have valuable things to say. We look forward to hearing them!

Blogging is an intriguing new form if you take it seriously. Short, immediate, cooperative, collegial, informal, interactive, free. Potentially, a superb forum for honing ideas and expressions, without the drawbacks or constraints of traditional publishing formats. Especially, without the formal barrier between author and readers enforced by traditional printed media. Thanks for participating!