Why Blog?

            I must confess that I have never heard of Andrew Sullivan.  And after reading all his exploits and achievements, I feel a wee bit embarrassed.  There is that part of me that feels as if it would inappropriate to comment and remark upon his own writing.  As if I do not have the right to do so.  But I can’t help but find some humor in it.  After all, Sullivan himself said that blogger opens himself/herself up to critics, “To blog is therefore to let go of your writing in a way, to hold it at arm’s length, open it to scrutiny, allow it to float in the ether for a while…”.   Does it not seem ludicrous to purposely put yourself in such a position?  Perhaps.  But like anything there is always a method behind madness.  Sullivan says that through this process we hope to achieve some “relative truth”.  I personally do not care for the word “truth”.  I feel that in this world nothing is every so certain.  Rather, I feel consensus would be more appropriate. 

            Now, aside from formulating a consensus amongst his readers and critics, Sullivan also blogs in order to create a larger knowledge base for himself and his readers.  He mentions how many of his readers will post links to other news sites, allowing for new information to circulate and differing opinions to collide.   Yea, collide.  For anyone who is familiar with the Internet there is nothing as annoying or frustrating then a political battle played out for everyone to see. Even Sullivan himself acknowledges, “This encourages polarized slugfests”.  However, Sullivan makes a good point when he asserts that from these “slugfests”, people are introduced to both sides.  Every news station and paper, whether they wish to acknowledge it or not, is biased.  But if you only ever listen to one side, how can you ever expect there to be a compromise?  Our own politicians are perfect examples of that.  So, by blogging Sullivan hopes that he can bring people to rational and constructive discussions. 

            Truthfully, there are more reasons and points to take from Sullivan, but it feels like a waste of time.  Rather, his entire point can be summarized quite easily.  The reasons behind Sullivan’s blogging relates to his desire to learn from himself and others.  When we are introduced from new perspectives and ideas, we grow.  This is what Sullivan hopes to pass onto his readers.  And because a blog is like a timeline, Sullivan can see his own personal growth laid out in front of him.  After all, don’t we learn from our past?