ObUma FISA Flip Wrong Move

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/16/us/politics/16web-seelye.html?emc=tnt&tntemail1=y

(excerpt)

It was barely five years ago when the word netroots first surfaced as a description of grassroots activists who push their political agendas on the Internet, especially through blogs.

Now the word is becoming a bona fide entry in the new edition of Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, and the netroots themselves are preparing for their third annual convention, starting Thursday in Austin, Tex.

The convention, formerly YearlyKos and now Netroots Nation, or NN08, bills itself as “the most concentrated gathering of progressive bloggers to date.” About 2,000 bloggers, activists, office-holders, vendors and others are expected to attend, with 200 members of the mainstream media tracking them (yes, roughly one old-media type for every 10 new-media hipsters.).

The convention comes just as some in the netroots are questioning Senator Barack Obama’s commitment to their values and whether their faith in him as a different kind of politician was misplaced.

Most of the discontent stems from his vote to give legal immunity to the telecommunications companies that participated in the Bush administration’s warrant-less wiretaps, after he had said he would filibuster it.

Of course with U.S. politics, the standard fall back would be that one must vote for ObUma to avoid a so-called "wasted vote" to prevent a victory by McCain (McSame).

The most plausible productive thing would be a vote instead for the Libertarian ticket of Barr-Root.