Meta-blogging

Ahhh... my first meta-blogging post!

I think this guy kinda misses the point... sure, Paine, Orwell, and Luther were in some ways our antecedents, but that's not what most people in the blogosphere say (sorry bpi... I know you hate that term)

Rather, the central nut is here:

Today, software tools make it cheap and simple to post personal journals on the Web, so more people do. "I wouldn't underestimate how much of this is driven by the tools," says Jonathan Weber, the former editor of the defunct Industry Standard, now starting a blog-infused Web site about the Rocky Mountain region.

It is so easy to do, and you can potential find a nitch with readers and folks all across the country and the world. It is even cool in terms that fall well short of that... a big reason I do this is to share my thoughts and discoveries with my family and friends. If I get some other reader, then that's great too.

But there are site that do things like this:

But some blogs are having an impact not unlike C-Span or Common Sense. Bloggers pounced on CBS' flawed report about President Bush's National Guard duty, helping push Dan Rather out of his anchor chair earlier than planned. Bloggers in Southeast Asia gave the world firsthand accounts — and some of the most dramatic video — of December's tsunami, often ahead of major media outlets.

This would not be possible if not for the available tools... and because the average joe can potentially make a big impact and have a voice is the reason blogs are so cool.