Meta: To My Critics

You might have noticed that I have been on hiatus for the past couple of days.  Some of that was due to problems with my internet connection.  But I have also been thinking how to respond to some of the criticism I have received over the last couple of days.  To be honest, I feel completely unrepentant about how this blog has developed.  But one thing I have realized is that there might be some misunderstanding about what I’m trying to do with this blog, so let me be very explicit about the purpose of this site and how I view my role as a blogger covering this race.

First, let’s talk about the name.  Some people have criticized me for not focusing enough on the “no to Pombo” aspect of this race.  I am somewhat sympathetic to this insofar as I do wish there was more commentary and analysis on Pombo’s machinations.  But the truth is that most people who come to this site are already anti-Pombo.  I could provide a more robust analysis of why it’s good to be anti-Pombo, but I think the overwhelming majority of my intended audience already gets it.  Furthermore, Wes at Pombo Watch and Scott at VPO both do a great job of keeping tabs on Pombo’s antics. So heaping on the criticism of Pombo is neither my primary purpose nor is it a niche that I especially need to fill.

Instead, I started Say No to Pombo primarily because I saw all sorts of anti-Pombo animus on the internet that was somehow cut off from electoral politics.  When I began Say No to Pombo, I saw a lot of posts specifically about how Pombo was attempting to gut the Endangered Species Act.  A lot of people understood how important it is to stop Pombo from passing his legislation.  But the overwhelming practical upshot of this animus was that activists from across the country were writing to their own legislators urging them to oppose Pombo’s legislation.  That’s fine up to a point.  But I think there is no way we’re going to be safe from Pombo’s attacks on the environment, his attempts to privatize public land, etc. unless we kick Pombo out of office.  And so I really think it’s important that there is a place online that connects the dots between “Pombo is bad” and “there’s an alternative to Pombo.”  

Say No to Pombo was born out of a desire to connect those dots.  To see how I conceptualize this, look at the first two sentences I ever wrote on this site:

This blog will be dedicated to the campaigns to oust Pombo from office in 2006. It seems logical, therefore, to begin with a diagnosis of the Democrats who have declared their candidacy for CA-11 in 2006.

Say No to Pombo was always in my mind a tool to focus attention on the efforts to kick Pombo out of office.  I started with the belief that focusing on the campaigns would help people who were not already involved identify ways that they could get involved.  This is something that I have been relatively successful at and I am very happy with my part in this.    

That said, I never did approach the race from an “anyone but Pombo” perspective.  I am a partisan Democrat, a progressive, and a grassroots activist.  All of that informs my perspective and provides me with a point of view that is distinct from the other anti-Pombo bloggers.  Consequently, from my perspective there are better and worse candidates in this race. And my concerns are more thorough-going than the four corners of this race. But, I have never tried to hide my biases.  In fact, re-reading the first post I ever wrote, I am surprised by how consistent my perspective on this race has been.  

Of course, I brought in other bloggers who did not share my perspective in order to provide a more useful and interesting site.  I hope that the site itself will be useful even for those who do not agree with me.  But there is only so much I can do to maintain the balance of perspective on this site when most of the people I have sought to recruit to blog on this site have demurred.  Also, going in, I did not anticipate writing so much more than my other co-bloggers.  And I certainly did not anticipate the level of vitriol that sometimes appears on this site.    

But those who chide me for being “biased” miss the entire purpose of this blog.  I can only give my honest opinion and analysis about the state of the race.  Each and every reader is free to take it or leave it. And I certainly respect and consider substantive critiques of what I am saying.  But the idea that I must mask my serious, persistent, and (up to this point) un-allayed concerns about Steve Filson is ridiculous.  I have invited any number of Filson supporters to blog on this site, and none have taken me up on my offer.  And I will certainly provide the space for pieces supportive of Steve Filson if and when they are proffered.  But beyond that, I do not think I have any obligation higher than providing a free and frank assessment of the state of the race.  

Maybe I am blind to the obvious or otherwise lack the appropriate judgment to handicap this race.  I concede the possibility.  But I see what I see and think what I think and when people push me on my positions I am satisfied with my ability to defend my positions in a coherent and thorough manner.              

More to the point, unlike a lot of bloggers, I am not someone who simply sits behind my computer and snipes.  I go out to meetings, make phone calls, and otherwise interact with the people who are working to fight Pombo.  And the fact of the matter is that when I speak to grassroots activists in the district, they largely confirm what I have been saying about the state of the race.  I know that what I am saying is not the conventional wisdom you see in the papers or the conventional wisdom out of DC.  But my thoughts and beliefs are shared by a large number of people who are in a position to know what’s what.            

Let me just finish by saying that I do not intend this piece to be a set of apologetics.  I do not feel contrite about my behavior, and so the drive-by anonymous attacks are not going to get me to change my tune. I believe in what I am doing and I certainly believe in my right to be doing it.  Going into this project, I knew that I would have my critics, and I understood that it would be a liability of blogging under my own name.  But I am reconciled with that.  And I will not be intimidated by the misplaced moralistic pique of those who cower behind aliases and anonymity to attack me as a messenger of a message they have no ability to engage.  Let us be clear about that.  

Tags: CA-11, Richard Pombo, Steve Filson, Say No to Pombo, meta