The End of Politics as Usual

I was checking my newsreader, seeing what was going on in the world. As the days wind down to the 2006 mid-term elections, it’s getting nasty — and funny — out there. Loretta Nall, according to ABC News, is using her feminine features as, uhh, a campaign platform of sorts. ABC News says, ‘Her campaign is offering T-shirts and marijuana stash boxes adorned with a photo of her with a plunging neckline and the words: ‘More of these boobs.’ Below that are pictures of other candidates for governor including Republican incumbent Bob Riley and Democratic Lt. Gov. Lucy Baxley and the words: ‘And less of these boobs.’” I tried to check her site, but it looks to have been slammed by people hearing about it. Could it be just the novelty, or is something bigger going on? I think, in this case, it’s just the novelty. But it got me to wondering. There are a lot of bloggers with some really important things to say, people who don’t toe any party’s line, who think independently, and who could truly bring about a revolution in American democracy. (Note, I do not consider myself one of those bloggers.) If I were a member of the Democratic or Republican party elite, I’d be getting really worried about now. That sinking-feeling-in-the-pit-of-your-stomach worried. It won’t happen this election season, and probably not in the 2008 elections, but the days of the traditional parties are numbered. A reader of Andrew Sullivan’s blog wrote in to say, “I say thank you for pointing out that real conservatives have been pushed out of the Republican Party. We can't be Democrats, but we can't be Republicans anymore either. Sometimes we feel like we have been dumped onto another planet.” It ain’t just conservatives, whatever that means anymore, who feel that way. The two major parties in America seem so out of touch with what happens in the daily lives of the people they represent, and what those people think, that they have become ineffectual to the point of appearing to be bumbling fools. I also wonder if the minor parties have ever connected with what real-life Americans think to begin with. So where does that leave us? Who will represent us? Who can we elect that understands us? The bloggers. Well, not all of them, because there are some nut-jobs out there that make Mark Foley look like a school marm. But maybe some of those like the afore-mentioned Sullivan. I wonder what kind of party it would be. Does there even need to be a “party?” All the campaign financing and stuff that parties do is good for the candidates, but the Internet, as has been said ad infinitum, has given voice to every American. Proof? Loretta Nall’s cleavage being noted on the ABC News website. The point is that any American can have their say on blogs, with podcasts, and even with their own campaign ads that they can post on YouTube. What does this confluence of technology bode for the big parties? It’s not looking good to me. As Americans begin to understand how to make the most of these tools, both as people who post on the internet, and as people who read what’s posted, the public will find themselves with more subtle and complex opinions that don’t fit party platforms. And they’ll find people with similar views who just happen to have blogs. Then, one day not to far off, a blogger will run for office, without party affiliation. And win.