Blogging Democracy

So why do some people hate bloggers? Blogging is quite possibly the truest form of democracy that exists in our society today. Through blogging, anyone can have their say and others can get informed and hear different points of view. I don't like hurtful blogs or when people plaster their views on the internet without thinking about what they are saying. We need to be thoughtful and considerate in our blogging while at the same time being free to give our opinions. Transparency and asking questions are important to my generation and probably will be to those coming after me. Blogging is becoming a way of life and we need to get used to it. Just look at news programming and political talk shows. These guys are always discussing bloggers' comments because blogs often demonstrate the attitudes of the masses - something that those of us leading the masses must always consider.

Dave sent me the link of Keith Drury's blog (http://wesleyanstuff.blogspot.com/)on the General Conference of the Wesleyan Church. Every four years delegates from the Wesleyan Church worldwide gather to deal with issues affecting the church at large. This is an event that most people will never get to, but Drury delivered a play-by-play on his blog. He talked about elections and which memorials passed. He also talked about the overall atmosphere and attitude of the conference. Drury's blog provides a way for anyone who has access to the internet an inside look into General Conference. To me this is enlightening and important. The shroud of mystery that surrounds GC no longer exists thanks to bloggers. That might make some people uneasy, but isn't it important to have people thinking about important issues and how they relate to their local church?

At the close of the conference yesterday, Drury said that the people he talked to were encouraged by the direction of the WC. He says this is because the people believe they took some of their power back. This is demonstrated by some of the memorials which were not approved by the delegates. The memorials not approved were mostly those which would give more power to headquarters and decrease local autonomy (If you care to know what the memorials were, you can find them at http://www.wesleyan.org/gc/). Local churches and districts want to have their say. Many of the memorials approved increased the power of local chuches and districts. This is a very positive move in eyes of many (obviously, they voted for it!).

Another thing that people apparently felt positive about was the election of JoAnne Lyon to the upper ranks of the WC. You can read Drury's comments about this on his blog as well as the views of those who left their comments. I think I'll comment on this tomorrow because it is an interesting turn of events. Not because she is a woman, but because she is seen as the peoples' candidate - once again, the masses taking a little bit of their power back.