A return to blogging (sort of)
(WARNING: This is going to sound a lot more like a LiveJournal entry than my usual posts, but you should read anyways).
It has been MONTHS since I’ve posted on AverageJoeLE. I will admit, like most of my projects, I had very high hopes for what this site could be. I envisioned it being a haven for distinctly “young conservatives” who were recent college grads, caught somewhere between students and professionals.
So what went wrong? The biggest part of it was the lack of content, obviously. Even with a number of writers on staff, people get busy, and you know the drill.
Second, I was creating a niche for a market that didn’t exist. Although we did have one big scoop (the Obama gear at the NBC Store) it wasn’t enough to pull us over the top without a steady stream of news.
Finally, I should have been more realistic and been able to recognize that I couldn’t run a full-fledged News and Opinion website while in my second year of law school. I bought the lie that second year was supposed to be easier. ONE HUNDRED PERCENT NOT TRUE. Toughest year of school at any level ever.
For the upcoming year, I hoped that maybe I could revive the idea, but the inherent problems still exist. On top of that, add on the fact that I am Editor in Chief for the Circuit Review at Seton Hall, will likely be volunteering for a campaign this summer and fall, need to earn some sort of income, traveling back and forth to DC to visit the lovely Ms. Yasenchak, searching for a permanent job, prepping for the bar exam, and O YEH, I’m getting married in a year.
Where does this leave AverageJoeLE? Well, for starters, it’s staying around for a little while longer, at least. It’s going to be slightly more “personal” but not in that creepy online diary way. It will be more like extended Facebook and Twitter posts, more like casual commentary on politics and news as the feeling strikes me. Some things will be more ranty, others will be more eloquent. Depends on my mood, really.
Although I’m not banning any old writers from the site (if you guys still have your passwords, feel free to contribute anytime!) I don’t expect them to write that much on here again. In fact, I’d be surprised if even half of them even read this post (but go ahead and surprise me in the comments, Tim Ryder et al.) I haven’t decided exactly what to do with the old content, but I’ll likely just leave it up for now.
Bottom Line: Please check back when you can to see what this Average Joe L-E, all on his own, thinks about the world. Hopefully, You’ll find it interesting.
Sincerely,
Joe
ACORN prostitution sting caught on video is wave of new conservative activism
With the recent scandal involving ACORN employees giving out tips to those turning tricks and trying to hide it from the taxman, much has been made of the tactics by those behind the project. James O’Keefe and Hannah Giles blew open the story by posing as pimp and prostitute and asking for help securing a loan. They actually received help in New York, Washington D.C., and Baltimore. Whether or not the mainstream media covers this is another matter, but it is a massive story.
The videos are shocking and appalling, and ACORN is finally getting its just desserts as the US Senate voted last night to cut their funding from upcoming Housing and Urban Development Projects. The US Census cut their ties with ACORN last week.
Had ACORN been watching the activist scene from the Right and not just encouraging it from the Left, they might have seen O’Keefe coming. Continue Reading »
Rules for Right Wingers
Dave Weigel points out the Right’s “new” fascination with Saul Alinsky on the Washington Independent today. It’s a good article, though I would make two minor clarifications.
First, it’s not that new. Over at the Leadership Institute, we’ve been talking about this book for years to everyone who will listen. College Republicans, libertarians, independent groups, and everyone in between have literally had copies of Rules for Radicals thrown at them (in the link I just found, I’m pretty sure I was the “provocative presentation” mentioned earlier). Continue Reading »
Where the Right went wrong
Kevin DeAnna has a great piece on the “Alternative Right” on Taki’s Magazine that is in sync with what a lot of people on AverageJoeLE.com think about the conservative “movement.” It’s also great because he links to New Guard, a project Kevin and I worked on last summer that you should all check out. We’re hoping to have Kevin on board with some articles here from time to time as well.
This is going to have to suffice for an “About” page until I get updates and edits together. Again, my apologies for how slow it has been– law school finals take a lot out of you.
