Post-Inauguration Thoughts…and Ideas!

It’s the day after the Inauguration of the most wired administration ever. At one minute after noon, as he assumed the office at the Capitol, the President Barack H. Obama whitehouse.gov site went active.

Simultaneously, President Obama’s inaugural speech challenged those of conservative views when he said, “The stale arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply.” And, he is right. It is the time to develop new principled challenges to the theories under which his administration will labor, none of which will be novel or unprecedented. And these must be presented as alternatives, not opposition, or fall quickly on deaf ears and closed minds.

The president’s “new media director” said the White House effort is focused on three priorities: communication, transparency, and participation. I’ll accept that…well, two of the three…and got to thinking conservatives need to hustle with catching up in these days of perpetual campaigning, er… guiding a movement.

Inauguration evening was indeed one of celebration. Ladies in their finery, first couple spotlight dances, and history in the making. Attending one of the balls was a memorable experience for me. It wasn’t that I danced the night away – it was a virtual “Twitter Ball” sponsored by Smart Girl Politics, a conservative internet social network. The group used “Twitter” as its ballroom, and hosted a gala that offered all the glitter and celeb power for which one could hope. And it was a terrific, fun way to meet other conservatives without incurring tux rental or dry cleaning bills – thankfully, my icon picture still fit without alterations.

After adapting to the cacophony of the ball, I was struck by the variety of very smart people exchanging thoughts, views and repartee via short “tweets.” Within 90 minutes I expanded my list of contacts by 30, from a Christian home schooling housewife in Idaho to a Midwest Member of Congress and a county party chairman in New England – thirty more like-minded acquaintances with whom to share thoughts and from whom to steal good ideas. And it was essentially effortless. Most important, through the gathering we provided one another the “social proof” that there are indeed others acting on similar values and ideas, the basis for participating beyond grumbling at the television. It amazed me later, reading the post-ball comments, how frequently the word “energized” was used to describe the afterglow. That is the affirmative power of “social proof.”

The concept of the “SGP Ball” was brilliant, drawing from several overlapping conservative Twitter “hash groups”, and a seemingly universal model for building, widening and maintaining social networks from precincts to Capitol Hill. It was nicely done, with celebrity “speakers” hosting special tweet rooms into the evening. And that’s the basic beauty of all this, the ability to rub shoulders with
scores of interesting people, including celebrities. Among those “at the ball” and regularly tweeting are columnist Michelle Malkin, Amanda Carpenter, columnist and regular on Bill O'Reilly, and S.E. Cupp, author and columnist.

Other regular tweeters include Karl Rove and Cindy McCain.

Consider this: Include an introduction to Twitter at the next meeting of your local group, from registering individual accounts to creating a hashtag group for your circle. Use Twitter as a means to communicate, to build and maintain friendships, to pass along links to interesting articles…the potential is endless, the reality engaging. Have a ball!