This diary is in reference to Bob Johnson's diary
Memo to lazy media: Daily Kos does NOT equal Markos about the Beltway media's inability to get what Daily Kos is about.
In the comments section of that diary I pointed to an editorial by Kirk Caraway of the Nevada Appeal. This is the local paper of Carson City, Nevada. And Kirk Caraway actually gets what Daily Kos is all about.
Because more than one commenter asked for rediaring my earlier diary from last Sunday on this article, I will do so below the fold.
"Can the Kos Effect change the Democratic Party?"
Kosmopolitans beware. Yearly Kos has had an impact. Okay, no big news, you already knew that. But I'm not talking about the Washington Post or Meet The Press. It goes farther than that.
This Saturday the Nevada Appeal, the local paper for Carson City, Nevada, has published an opinion piece that asks "Can the Kos Effect change the Democratic Party?"
When an editor at a local rural paper takes notice of Daily Kos you just know that things are changing.
The opinion article, written by the Nevada Appeal's internet editor Kirk Caraway, was published in the Nevada Appeal and the North Lake Tahoe Bonanza.
Some excerpts from the article. Read the whole thing. It's terrific:
And when these people came together online, they found that they had something in common: They had a far different view of the Democratic Party than the party's leaders.
The leaders were living in their Washington Beltway bubble, ignoring the people they were supposed to be serving, doing business as usual.
So, here we finally have a newspaper editor who figured out what it's all about. That the editor himself doesn't live in the "Washington Beltway bubble" - like so many in the traditional media - might help.
The Internet allows the movement to be open to all ideas, and the best ones percolate to the top. It's not who you know, but what you know that's important. Instead of being told what to think by talking heads on television, the Netroots debate their issues online, hidden behind their usernames. They come up with positions that reflect real people, not what some paid consultant says will work. They are changing what it means to be a liberal, creating a more progressive, inclusive philosophy. They don't necessarily want bigger government, but better government, government that serves real people and not just those with power and influence.
Now, I've lived in Northern Nevada as an exchange student ten years ago. Most people in this area don't read the New York Times or the Washington Post. However they do read their local paper. Reading an editorial like this one and especially the sentence I've emphasized might actually endear some of those independently minded Northern Nevadans to the Democratic Party or at least it's local candidates. I think that line is so good it should be repeated by Nevadan candidates in their stump speaches.
Some have tried to characterize the Netroots as a bunch of far-left whackos who want to drag the party away from the center. But take a closer look and you will find they are far more pragmatic and moderate than those labels imply.
The Netroots tout the candidacies of people like James Webb, the former Republican who served as Navy Secretary under Ronald Reagan, who is running for the U.S. Senate in Virginia. Other favorites include Jon Tester of Montana, also running for Senate, and Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer. They like maverick Democrats who aren't afraid to stand up and say what they think without waiting for some pollster to tell them. It's not necessarily how liberal or conservative they are, it's about connecting with the voters and being a real person, just like them.
Again, this might play especially well in Northern Nevada. Keep in mind that the rural areas of Nevada consistently vote Republican. This year for the first time since the creation of the 2nd Congressional District in 1982 Democrats have a chance to win Nevada's rural seat. And note that Governor Schweitzer has already endorsed the Democratic candidate for this seat, Jill Derby.
This election year will be a test to see how well Democrats can do in the rural, rather conservative areas of Nevada. Nevada has become a swing state in presidential elections. That Bush still won Nevada both in 2000 and 2004 is mainly due to the rurals where he won overwhelmingly. That's why Senate candidate Jack Carter's campaign has instituted a rural strategy. Read Sarah R Carter's diary on their rural strategy.
This movement is making its power known through its fundraising. They can quickly raise large amounts of money from thousands of small donors very quickly, money that can have immediate impacts in close races. This helps them make up the gap in fundraising and organization that the Republicans have enjoyed for a long time.
The Internet gives me hope that we may once again have a two-party system, one that reflects the will of the people, on both sides. It's changing the way political parties operate, the Democrats more than Republicans. It will be interesting to see just how much pull these Netroots can have come this November.
I'm still surprised about this excellent editorial. Here is evidence that sometimes the traditional media knows what it's talking about. That is when it's not based in D.C. But somehow I've got an inkling that Mr. Caraway might be a Kosmopolitan himself...
Please make sure to check out Jill Derby and Jack Carter. Donate, volunteer or tell your friends. Nevada can be instrumental in taking back Congress.
And please check out my blog and help me Turn Tahoe Blue.
PS: Since first writing that diary I have started my own Turn Tahoe Blue ActBlue page. There you can easily donate to Jack Carter and Jill Derby.
[Update at 12.17 Eastern]: If you think this might be a one timer by Mr. Caraway then go and read his editorial in today's Nevada Appeal headlined "Scoring political points over war while our soldiers fight and die" which is very critical of both the President and Congress. While you might not agree with everything he writes this almost sounds like something that could have been written on Daily Kos.