Trace Sharp

The power of having a conversation, asking a question and actually listening to the answer is important. Talking to real people, listening to their responses, engaging in getting to know someone and realizing that there really aren’t strangers out there, just folks you haven’t met is crucial. I had to be reminded of this fundamental truth this week. Four times this week I met someone new that altered me to a degree. I’ve always loved the art of a conversation and was given this gift that I honestly didn’t know I needed but realize that it was as deep within me as needed air and water.

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With 100 million active users, more than 10 times as many as in the 2008 election, Twitter has emerged as a critical tool for political campaigns, allowing them to reach voters, gather data and respond to charges immediately. But like most new media tools, it also carries danger for the campaigns. It can quickly define the political debate, whether candidates like it or not, and a single 140-character missive can turn into a nightmare. “Twitter has changed the whole way that politics works,” said Teddy Goff, the digital director of President Obama’s re-election campaign. “Not just the press element, but the organizing element and the fund-raising element and the relationship building that all campaigns try to do.

Unfortunately, Senator Campfield isn’t up for re-election this year, so we can’t kick him out. There are, though, plenty of politicos out there who share his backwards politics, many of them right here in Tennessee! Lucky us! So get involved. Send money. Volunteer. Talk to your friends and neighbors. And good grief: vote. Decisions are made by those who show up.

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