One of my New Year's resolutions was to leave email lists (are you hearing me, DCCC?) that I no longer read or have time for.
As I was going through my inbox and folders, I realized that there were many groups that I hadn't participated in for a long, long time but was still receiving feeds from.
The past week or so has been devoted to unsubscribing. As I hit 60, it's time to focus on me for a change. I gave a lot for many, many years. Some of it's been rewarding, some of it has been frustrating. What really pisses me off is that it's become more frustrating than rewarding. So it's time to move on.
I suppose that I could have continued relegating those no longer wanted lists and emails to my spam list. But health issues, and (to be honest) engagement issues, brought me to the point where I needed to weed out what was important to me and what I could live without.
Thinking back, it was a new years resolution from (I think) navajo a few years back on maintaining my email box that got me to where I am now. So much of the email I receive is, charitably, spam.
I love you, James Carville, but I no longer want your spam (via DCCC) cluttering my inbox. Neither do I want to receive right wing rants from Americans for Limited Government, or any of the other tea party groups who think I'm on board with them. To be clear, it's not just tea party groups - I think I've managed to make it on every liberal / progressive list out there.
My politics, going forward, is gonna be limited to what I read here. I am tired of the endless fundraising emails. My wallet is no longer an ATM for "progressive groups" who are tied to the Third Way. In fact, I'm closing my wallet for the foreseeable future.
Take what you want from this; leave the rest. My remaining time is limited. There is only one commodity more precious than money - time. Maybe it's a natural progression of progressivism, but many of us tend to lose focus on the finite limits of what we have to give.
Whatever you do, keep your eye on what you can support, the costs associated, and the potential end result of your commitment, be it money or time. Both are in short supply right now.