First-time diarist here, so be gentle...
As most know, we've become disenchanted by the MSM, especially over the past several months. If not for the blogs, mainly Daily Kos (honestly), I'd be hard pressed to find the real truth in what goes on in politics.
Anyway, I came across a blog written on Obsidianwings.
It was written in '06 before Obama announced his candidacy. It speaks of how his bipartisanship is belied in his (at the time the blog was written) 3 years in the Senate.
But I do follow legislation, at least on some issues, and I have been surprised by how often Senator Obama turns up, sponsoring or co-sponsoring really good legislation on some topic that isn't wildly sexy, but does matter. His bills tend to have the following features: they are good and thoughtful bills that try to solve real problems; they are in general not terribly flashy; and they tend to focus on achieving solutions acceptable to all concerned, not by compromising on principle, but by genuinely trying to craft a solution that everyone can get behind.
This section is pretty telling, in my opinion, and I recommend you read the blog in its entirety. While most of the media is focused on Wright, "Bittergate", and Flag pins, they're completely ignoring the things they should be focusing on.
Granted, we know this is how they work, but I think we've been pulled into the murky swamp along with the MSM. How? By being put on the defensive. This is what's happening to the Obama campaign. They've been forced to play defense. They, like us, have to find a way out of that.
Nothing wrong with ranting about what makes us angry, but promoting what's good about Obama will put the focus on where it should be...the positive.
It's hard. I know. Just today I heard a Clinton supporter state once again how Obama couldn't answer the "tough" questions at the ABC debate. That's inaccurate, of course. We hear the same thing from the media day in and day out. Fact is, he answered the questions, and it's not that they were tough questions, it's that they were stupid questions. Ones that were asked and answered many times before.
It's hard not to focus on the fabrications, distortions, or lies when we hear them on a daily basis. We want to defend what we know not to be true. That's all well and good, but while we're doing that, work hard at putting the focus on the positives concerning the man Obama has shown himself to be. Blogs are one of the best ways to do this. Word spreads, no doubt about it, whether bad or good.