Prolific Blogging Gets You Nowhere, But...!

This is my 600th post on this blog. I previously wrote 5,708 posts at Bush Out, another 259 at Riding The Juggernaut, plus maybe a hundred more at short-lived blogs including The Wendi Deng Watchers Club. That's a total of over 6,500 blog posts since February 2003, which works out at over four blog posts per day for over four years. What do I have to show for it? Nothing.

No money, no fan base, no media profile. Nothing.

BUT...!

George W. Bush is stuck at 30% in the polls, and will almost certainly be remembered as the worst US President in History. Tony Blair was forced from office and will spend the rest of his days covering his ass. And John Winston Howard, now thrashing about like a goose on the pre-election chopping block, will forever be remembered (at best) as Australia's own Margaret Thatcher: a divisive figure who who dragged his country dangerously towards the Far Right, who alienated his country from regional neighbours while sucking up to the USA, and who led his country into a shamelessly contrived war. I am proud to have been a part of that change.

Furthermore, there is a widespread renaissance of community-based thought online, wherein citizens of many nations are awakening to the realisation that, in this increasingly globalized world, our governments are not necessarily acting in the best interests of the people they supposedly serve. My blogs may not amount to anything more than a drop in the bucket of online opinion, but again, I am proud to have been a part of this public awakening.

That is all.

UPDATE: Well, not quite all! This is from my good friend Winter Patriot's blog:

As far as possible, nothing on this blog is about me.

I don't want any recognition for what I do here. And I don't want any money. All I want is for you to learn the truth. If the media suddenly started telling you the truth, I would happily go back to my "normal life" -- my wife and our kids and my job -- and forget all this frozen blog stuff. But that's not likely to happen anytime soon.

I do want recognition, and I do want money! But I can live without those things. Of course it is more important that people learn the truth, and to that extent I fully support WP's statement of purpose.

UPDATE 2: Also worth noting this from Antony Loewenstein:

Democracy is unquestionably under threat across the world, in both the Western and non-Western world. In countries like Britain, the US and Australia, governments went to war in Iraq against the will of the people, continue to maintain troops there against the wishes of the people and would probably fight another war - perhaps against Iran in the next years - against the desires of the population. This isn’t democracy; it’s deluded authoritarianism dressed up as tough foreign policy.

Blogs have certainly democratised the political process, and allowed “average” citizens the chance to engage... Blogs can’t bring democracy on their own, but they can certainly allow a far greater number of people into the process. This is only a bad thing for those not wanting to give up the levers of power.