SHARKWATER

Wednesday, April 26, 2006

The Power of Blogs

I've been meaning to recommend a political weblog written by Glenn Greenwald. I find the content compelling and well-reasoned, and the writing terrific. It's a pleasure to read something of that quality (and quantity!) in a "blogosphere" that seems intent on proving that all discussions can devolve into name-calling, profanity, and invective.

So I was especially pleased to see that Glenn has written a book, called How Would a Patriot Act?, addressing what he deems to be a "president run amok." Strong words, but I anticipate that he will back them up, based on what I've already seen in his blog.

But the most impressive thing to me is this: based on almost no advertising or promotion other than mentions and links on blogs, his book has shot to the top of Amazon.com's book sales in the last couple of days. That is just incredible to me, and speaks volumes about the power of this medium to actually reach and move people.

[Disclaimer: I have no connection to Glenn Greenwald, other than admiring his writing. I have no financial stake in promoting his book, just a rooting interest.]

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