Soccer Dad

I'm going to open a can of worms here, sorry about that SD!

I disagree with you on some of these points. On the notion of setting agendas I profoundly disagree with you.

Maybe because I have what I consider a tiny insignificant blog, but I don't look to either of those sites for any agenda to be set, I can't say I've had much opportunity to read powerline at all actually, though I will check it out more now on my faith in your own taste. I enjoy LGF tremendously, it is now primarilly a higlighter of stories, there's very little actual writing there.

If that were to become the standard for us to set or aspire too, we could in a short time be replaced by a system like google with better filtering abilities.

LGF at this point rarely seems to engage with other blogs at all, other than a chosen two or 3. That's seems to be detrimental to the community concept you are advocating and I agree with. And let's be clear, I'm not ragging on LGF, it is the biggest blog and I am glad about that because the alternative might be al-jazeera.

If anything I'd say the larger a blog gets the more it seems to be like an MSM outlet, detached and set in its own universe by the very nature of its size and there's no blame there, it's probably just the reality of having such a big blog.

The whole Pajamas Media outfit features truly excellent blogs, but it also now features an excellent attempt to make money. As blogs focus on generating revenue, the line between them and a news outfit becomes more & more blurred and the original impetus of many little voices making a big difference is also lost in some manner. I see this more as a negative trend as opposed to a postive one.

I see Pro-Israel blogs as an extension of hasbara, mixed with the individual opinions of bloggers. As such the events surrounding Israel itself set the agendas in my opinion.

The reason imho the Garlasco affair was such a disaster was not because of follow through lacking per say by bloggers big or small, who did a good job and are still doing so, but because the agenda setter in my opinion (Israel & its Govt) did such a poor job at the outset, making the job of those advocating for it that much more difficult.

Whether one is towing the Israel Govt line, or going totally against it, I would hope that any Pro-Israel blogger is doing so because he or she believes their views on matters is correct, but at the end of the day they are reacting to events surrounding Israel, and not events surrounding other blogs per say, the root is always Israel, or Jihad, or the war for Israel, or the West for that matter as these things are linked IMHO.

Also I realize that you initiated this to make a point specifically for this Garlasco topic, and I have taken it well out of the original context, but that's what blogging is for.. I think : )

I may also be just an anomally,

it is worth noting that I read the many opinions and excellent stories on this specific case around on many blogs, as such did not jump in, because the job was being well done beyond what I could contribute. I see this very often, and it is not limited remotely to 2 or 3 blogs, but a much wider net, as is healthy, and as it should be!

If we all tow any big blogs line, or its agenda there's not much purpose for us in the end. I want to be free to say I disagree entirely with a post on a huge blog and not be worried about how that might impact my own blog - I don't know if my point has come across in this long diatribe, but I hope so.

First of all, if LGF and Powerline set the agenda for pro-Israel blogs (and I'm not sure that they do) we have the opportunity to set their agendas. LGF has what is a massive amount of comments for a blog, and because its West Coast based, much of the day in Israel is subsumed under the "dead thread." You can post links on the dead thread, and they do get read. I know - much of my traffic comes from it.

Second, it's hard to be critical of a bunch of bloggers who are being paid little or nothing for doing this, and are working one or two jobs besides doing this. If we "don't follow through enough" it's usually not because we don't want to, but because we don't have the time to. The number of posts it takes every day to really be an effective pro-Israel blog - unless you're an aggregator - is staggering.

Third, saus is right - I don't read Powerline much, but Charles does very little original writing at LGF these days. He can't - he also has a business to run. And unlike many of us, he has more to discuss than just being pro-Israel. Most of the good blogs I have seen where there's a lot of original writing don't do more than one or two posts a day (Captain's Quarters and Atlas Shrugs being notable exceptions, but Atlas has been doing a lot more Vlogging these days, which should take less time if you have the equipment).

Fourth, I think we all have to face the reality that outside of the blogosphere, most people have not heard of us and that the Israeli government probably couldn't care less about what we post. Worse still, I suspect that some of their 'professional' hasbara people may resent us or things we post from time to time. It would be nice to be appreciated by the people you're trying to help. Reality is that it's not really likely to happen. With no money and no recognition in it, what are the rewards for blogging? Personally, I find it cathartic and just hope that people are reading what I write. But unless and until I get to the point that I have several thousand hits a day, I don't expect to have a whole lot of influence.

Thank you David for drawing attention to the poll, and some very interesting points raised.

So far, the poll results are very interesting, and it looks like another case of the 80:20 rule. And wow! 20% of readers who visit our blogs are influenced to the extent that they change their views. I think that is a great result.

Regarding what Carl said above about the Israeli government not caring what we post nor paying attention, don't be too sure. Yes, I think they should be utilizing the blogosphere to a greater extent, but it doesn't mean they are not aware of us, or not reading us. For instance, I was once contacted by somone working for the Israeli consul. And I think US government people are also reading our blogs.

I agree that there's more we can do, always is, but it also needs to be said here that we're already overworked and underpaid, fairly insignificant, and faced with a daunting task. Hello.

However, feel free to join me in bringing attention to the very poor job Ra'anan Gissin is doing as "Olmert's foreign media advisor."
http://bokertov.typepad.com/btb/2006/06/when_in_doubt_b.html
What a whiner.

And btw, that WaPo feature of linking to blogs is very selective. I've found that they don't link to my blog if/when I criticize the Post or their writers. Thanks, but I'd rather not pay their price to become "high profile."

SD, you've done more than anyone to make pro-Israel blogging a "community effort" and you deserve our kudos for that. My problem with getting on (any) team stems from the very same rebellious nature that prompted me to blog in the first place. Kind of a Catch-22.

Personally I ignore the biggies.

I consider my blogging to be my contribution to the hasbara effort. I feel that there's a terrible vacum, and I need you guys/gals to pass the posts around more.

The media is unreliable. I just wrote another vs The NYT.

I was horrified during my recent visits to the states when I saw the massive disengagement from what is happening in Israel. I'm going again in a couple of weeks and it's depressing.

Regarding the issue of not posting about something because it is already covered by others:

If you have something to say about it, and the time to say it, then say it. Or if an issue or piece of news is really important to you, even if you are only parroting or linking to others who have already covered it well, post it -- get your vote in. Your blog gives you a vote in the campaign for readers' attention and their perception of priorities. There are a lot of high-visibility places where issues appear based primarily on the number of bloggers talking about them. (technorati, truth laid bare,...) If 5 have already posted, there is plenty of room for 5 more. Don't be shy because you worry your own post won't measure up -- it's not a competition, we're generally on or at least near the same side. Even a short post linking to others, when the issue merits it, can help.

Obviously not everything merits this approach. If you see that a baby elephant was born at the local zoo, but others have already covered it, maybe you can let that one go. But if the elephant had twins, make yourself heard.

Hi Carl, I unfortunately do not have an ID at LGF, I don't think I can register now so I don't even hit the comments sections as I am an opinionated fellow and that would be tantamount to utter frustration lol.

great comments here

Abbagav! I'm nixed from technorati, no longer indexing me :(
I'm assuming it is their spam filter / related.

There are a lot of 'flitters' out there who are searching for material and stumble over news and ideas and perspectives. You never know when the one item you've quoted from, the one picture or cartoon or other selction or whatever pops up somewheres on someone's screen. There are peole who blog very personally and every story has their own personal attachement and there are others who strand back and just make one short observation. Everyone is contributing. The search engines just may steer someone your way.

and, of course, it helps if you spell correctly (sorry about the typos in that last comment above)