-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Thomas Grant Edwards <tedwards@Glue.umd.edu> wrote:

The Religious Right brings their agenda to the public spotlight because they become incredibly involved in local politics on a nationwide basis and have the knowledge, means, and money to influence politics at this level. Very few people who are outside the political process realize the amount of organization, dedication, and dollars required to achieve political validity.

This is a well made point, and I certainly do not claim to be one of those who has an internal understanding of the political process. I submit that the frenzied coverage of the presidential campaign *severely reduces* the required knowledge, means and money, needed to raise issues to the fore, and that furthermore, a lot of the "means and money" that you mention are used for communication and organization. Of course, an organized campaign on the Net is essentially free, but for the cost in time. It is my opinion that the political power of the Net is just starting to awaken, and that a perception of impotence in the political process, is just that - a perception. David C. Lambert dcl@panix.com (finger for PGP public key) -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: 2.6.2 iQCVAwUBMFcpYKpplsfgM88VAQF8lgP8CViP3ggK68e5l6KGTqcI/2uHp0cP6z9t a2etUdxH0QBuyWu3MVVsWuB+6n6QcRSO69rh0E/U5apzqJoPMdirbLt8B/cMdsAg yY4vfEhGLZkuG5470uP9GKR6TF00YiZmfIoXtfDJPmbfcRwj018S1xe7myeGyLJm ARpzGgrYR30= =r3ff -----END PGP SIGNATURE-----