So a friend directed me to read this blog, Dooce, and I went, albeit reluctantly. I've read other blogs by people who post daily or near-daily entries about their lives. I usually wind up thinking, "Who cares?" Then I remember I am one of those bloggers.
Ouch.
Now I am wondering what kinds of things people actually like to read when they visit blogs. As a reporter, I am used to reader survey information that tells us what readers want from their newspaper. But I've never actually approached blogging from that standpoint. Perhaps it's time I did.
Here are a few questions I encourage you to answer, if for no other reason than to help direct the future of The Script.
- What do you like to read?
- Which posts on The Script have been your favorites? Which ones did you like the least?
- Should there be more pictures and videos?
- If you could change anything about this blog, what would it be? Feel free to list all of your ideas.
In the meantime, I have added Dooce and the author's husband's blog, blurbomat, to my links on the right. Check them out and let me know what you think.
Oh, and GO TIGERS!
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
Saturday, October 14, 2006
Mags comes through HUGE!
Maglio Ordonez hits a three-run, walk-off bomb and the Detroit Tigers win the American League pennant.
Unbelievable.
Way to go, guys. Good luck in the Series.
GO TIGERS!
Unbelievable.
Way to go, guys. Good luck in the Series.
GO TIGERS!
Friday, October 06, 2006
Why didn't they tell me sooner?
If any of you wonder what it's like for me to be a journalist, here's a great column by Washington Post columnist Gene Weingarten.
Not only is it insightful, it's very funny.
In response to my last post, a couple people made a point of stressing the importance of voting and being involved in the political and election process.
I submit to you that it takes more than voting and involvement. Voting, in itself, is a rather simple act, but it can't stand alone.
People who want to vote and play a role in shaping our leadership must act before and after they visit the polls.
Each person needs to make a zealous effort to educate himself or herself and independently arrive at a decision on who or what to support in each election based on his or her own values, morals and beliefs.
We cannot simply accept the talking points and platforms wholesale of either party or a special interest and expect government to be responsive to our needs and wants as a society.
We need to educate ourselves and others, which is hard work, but too many people are going to the polls and making decisions that will impact our future without enough knowledge to do so effectively.
Ignorant people are deciding my future, and that's perhaps the most disappointing part of the political culture.
Only slightly less disappointing is the fact that elected leaders, such as Pres. George W. Bush, V.P. Dick Cheney and many others, are counting on the ignorance of the masses to elect them to positions of power, from which they impose their will on the rest of us.
After we arm ourselves with knowledge and go to the polls to cast educated votes, we then have more work to do. We have to hold elected officials at all levels accountable for their actions. I'm not suggesting an armed revolt. Instead, I am encouraging us all to write to our representatives and let them know what we think. If we don't tell them, they won't know.
Here are some links to find your appropriate representatives at the various levels of government:
Michigan House of Representatives
Michigan Senate
Michigan Governor
U.S. House of Representatives
U.S. Senate
President of the United States
For city officials or other states, a simple Google search should get you the right information.
Not only is it insightful, it's very funny.
In response to my last post, a couple people made a point of stressing the importance of voting and being involved in the political and election process.
I submit to you that it takes more than voting and involvement. Voting, in itself, is a rather simple act, but it can't stand alone.
People who want to vote and play a role in shaping our leadership must act before and after they visit the polls.
Each person needs to make a zealous effort to educate himself or herself and independently arrive at a decision on who or what to support in each election based on his or her own values, morals and beliefs.
We cannot simply accept the talking points and platforms wholesale of either party or a special interest and expect government to be responsive to our needs and wants as a society.
We need to educate ourselves and others, which is hard work, but too many people are going to the polls and making decisions that will impact our future without enough knowledge to do so effectively.
Ignorant people are deciding my future, and that's perhaps the most disappointing part of the political culture.
Only slightly less disappointing is the fact that elected leaders, such as Pres. George W. Bush, V.P. Dick Cheney and many others, are counting on the ignorance of the masses to elect them to positions of power, from which they impose their will on the rest of us.
After we arm ourselves with knowledge and go to the polls to cast educated votes, we then have more work to do. We have to hold elected officials at all levels accountable for their actions. I'm not suggesting an armed revolt. Instead, I am encouraging us all to write to our representatives and let them know what we think. If we don't tell them, they won't know.
Here are some links to find your appropriate representatives at the various levels of government:
Michigan House of Representatives
Michigan Senate
Michigan Governor
U.S. House of Representatives
U.S. Senate
President of the United States
For city officials or other states, a simple Google search should get you the right information.
Tuesday, October 03, 2006
GOP = Gross Overabundance of Power
In a Rolling Stone article, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. basically alleges Pres. G. W. Bush stole the 2004 election from John Kerry, then Kennedy backs his charge up with four pages of research.
A couple of things struck me before I even read the story: Bobby Jr. is a Democrat (he's a Kennedy, after all) and his report was published in a magazine that targets the liberal 18- to 34-year-old demographic.
With that said, I don't think the report should be dismissed out of hand. I think RFK Jr. is attempting to connect with America's grass-roots crowd, albeit through pop culture.
The article blasts Ohio's Republican leaders' handling of the 2004 presidential election, as well as exit polling. Both arguments make pretty convincing cases.
But even as Bobby Jr. points out himself, our nation's election system is far from consistent and riddles with flaws. Still, I'm inclined to believe Gee Dub and his cronies had their hands in the electoral process rather than believing there were so many mistakes in so many different places that all favored Bush.
It's not beyond our infamous Commander in Chief to lie to us. There weren't any weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Saddam Hussein didn't have anything to do with the 9/11 attacks. The list goes on and on.
As a reporter and a member of the "mass media," I am a little disappointed in how the information was ignored or swept aside without proper scrutiny. Perhaps if enough reporters in enough cities had reached enough people with the facts...
Oh, well. Here's to wishing.
I guess this teaches us all a valuable lesson. The government has only as much power as we give them, and the intelligent people haven't been paying close enough attention to the power our government has usurped from us.
We have a chance to make a difference in November. Maybe we should start taking our right to vote a little more seriously.
A couple of things struck me before I even read the story: Bobby Jr. is a Democrat (he's a Kennedy, after all) and his report was published in a magazine that targets the liberal 18- to 34-year-old demographic.
With that said, I don't think the report should be dismissed out of hand. I think RFK Jr. is attempting to connect with America's grass-roots crowd, albeit through pop culture.
The article blasts Ohio's Republican leaders' handling of the 2004 presidential election, as well as exit polling. Both arguments make pretty convincing cases.
But even as Bobby Jr. points out himself, our nation's election system is far from consistent and riddles with flaws. Still, I'm inclined to believe Gee Dub and his cronies had their hands in the electoral process rather than believing there were so many mistakes in so many different places that all favored Bush.
It's not beyond our infamous Commander in Chief to lie to us. There weren't any weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Saddam Hussein didn't have anything to do with the 9/11 attacks. The list goes on and on.
As a reporter and a member of the "mass media," I am a little disappointed in how the information was ignored or swept aside without proper scrutiny. Perhaps if enough reporters in enough cities had reached enough people with the facts...
Oh, well. Here's to wishing.
I guess this teaches us all a valuable lesson. The government has only as much power as we give them, and the intelligent people haven't been paying close enough attention to the power our government has usurped from us.
We have a chance to make a difference in November. Maybe we should start taking our right to vote a little more seriously.
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