I'm not keen on self-reflexive Weblog posts, but Jorgen articulates some smart guidelines for posting to a Weblog. Smart, that is, with the exception of reason #5:
5. No politics
I try not to talk about real-world politics at all, as I think those beliefs are purely personal. I dislike reading about other people's political beliefs in their weblogs, so I don't try to foist my own opinions on politics onto others. Nobody will ever change their political beliefs by reading a weblog, so why bother?
I couldn't disagree more with this statement. What is a weblog if not foisting your personal beliefs on your readers. That's why they're reading in the first place. After all, in Jorgen's latest entry he quotes his own views on BPM. Maybe if his blog promised to only be about enterprise software architecture, then it'd be fair to not expect, say, polemics on anarchism. However, as he states earlier in the same post ('Reason 4: Balance the whole person'), he wants to provide a 'a more rounded picture of the whole me.'
Furthermore, if weblogs aren't going to change political beliefs, what else won't? Should we not bother writing essays or publishing books on socio-political subjects? I think weblogs are more likely to change people's opinions. They're fresh, dynamic, casual and generally read by educated people. These are all good reasons to address your political views in a weblog. If readers don't like them, or the frequency with which you express them, then they can look elsewhere.
11:01:10 PM 
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