Getting Started (Energy, Enthusiasm, Passion, Purpose)

Hello, I am weboy.

The last time I did a guest blog for my pal Red, it was Christmastime and she went on a trip, and left me her car.  This time, no car, but more prominence, and a few bucks. I can't say, really, which was the better offer.

(The pic, BTW, is a followup to the one I posted with my last intro. As you can see, I've aged, but nicely.)

I felt the need for an introduction, if only because we've never been properly introduced. I've known Leigh a long time, and guest blogging for her was kind of a natural fit, but it just happened, and here I was... and well, I've never entirely explained myself... or why I care about the issue at hand.

Which brings me to the point of this post... and a question below the fold.

Democrat, liberal progressive... whatever the current trend in labeling is, count me in the one labeled lefty. I was raised a Democrat, of interracial parents (though my Dad was the anomalous black conservative), and it turns out I'm gay. Yes, I pretty much check all the boxes (and I'm an ardent, raised on Ms., feminist). More than that, though, I  do, sincerely, believe in what liberal politics tries to accomplish - what we do, as a society, for those who cannot. Help others, protect the rights of minorities... all the notions, I think, of what it is to do good. (And not, I should add, things that belong solely to lefty politics... but I think conservatives have a lot of work to to do to show a commitment to really addressing poverty issues in an intelligent way.)

When I started blogging (my own blog is just over two and a half years old now), I wasn't sure what I'd write; I wasn't sure I had it in me to write a lot about politics, to try and move or persuade people. As it turns out... I do. Now, years on, I wish I had more time for film reviews and writing about hair and clothes. Instead, my passion turns out to be politics, and the issues we face.

My passion for writing about issues around poverty come from many things - not least being that, right now, I am probably poorer than I've ever been. Blogging is great... but the economics of it are lousy, and a part time job that allows me to write... doesn't make me rich. But it's not just me - I see a society that's failing it's neediest people, that can't maintain social safety net, decent housing, quality schools, or affordable health care. I see a society that can't see its own class issues, or bridge painful divides between races, classes, and ethnicities.... but tries. I wants us to keep trying; I just want us to try harder.

If you're looking for answers... well, so am I. My passionate belief in change is, in middle age, tempered by the understanding that real change is slow, and that people resist it; we like what is familiar, what we know. It takes time to get people to see the possibilities. And commit to them.

My question to you - so we can get to know each other - is what makes you passionate for change? What drives you, what moves you? Because I think when we harness a lot of energy, enthusiasm, passion and purpose... many things are possible. I hope you'll take the time to share... and stick around to see what develops... and maybe even make some change.

-NYC weboy

(photo of me, er, Billy Bob (at SXSW), by eschipul, under a flickr Creative Commons license.)