I wanted to allow for some time and distance before following up on my last post #TCOT Dome or a misunderstanding? The post received a little attention being linked from The American Spectator and The National Review Online. While no real response came from Michael Patrick Leahy (MPL) that I saw, his Web site TCOTReport.com linked to this site and the others who linked to my post; acknowledgment of the backlash stemming from his call for the RNC chair Mike Duncan to withdraw from the RNC leadership race that included language and was followed by actions that I and others felt gave the impression he was speaking on behalf of all of us on #TCOT.

It was suggested his actions were agreed upon ahead of time by conference call discussions. I have since confirmed, through several different sources, that the calls only included a small minority of those who appear on the #TCOT list. Of the 1500 or so members on the list at the time, only about 16 were on the line when it was agreed MPL would write his blog post.

The original intent of my post was to start a conversation and one did ensue for a short time. I have received several comments on this blog, direct messages on Twitter, and e-mails from those who shared my thoughts on the issue and those who had opposing viewpoints. Everyone who discussed the issue with me was civil and understanding of both sides. It was the kind of dialogue I really enjoy and was hoping for.

There were some other conversations between #TCOT members that were not as civil or constructive. Several members were called “trolls” and told they were acting as “sour pusses” when they expressed their concerns about MPL’s behavior. These members appear to feel alienated and some still believe their concerns are not being addressed. That is unfortunate but expected. Not every argument has a positive resolution.

As for direct engagement, I did not ask for a specific response from MPL but I do find the parellel between what I wrote and what he wrote rather interesting. Like MPL I am a lone blogger with only a few supporters to my name attempting to influence change. I was attempting to start a discussion about the direction and decision making involved around #TCOT while MPL was focused on doing the same with the RNC. MPL boasts conservative and organizational credentials perhaps leading him to believe his voice would be heard and a response would follow. I do not claim resume or regality and so I was happy that MPL linked to this site and acknowledged there were some questioning his decision but expected little more and that is what I received.

I did not take the absence of a direct response as a sign of anything. The same cannot be said for MPL or several in the community who believed their demands should have been answered directly by Mike Duncan and took the absence of an immediate retort as evidence that his leadership was somehow unresponsive to us all. It was another signal that his message was sent with the perception of being from or somehow endorsed by #TCOT.

So what does all this mean or matter? Frankly not much. I still have the concerns I did when I wrote the original post. If future actions by MPL and some in the #TCOT community are taken to make demands or create wedges within the internal politics of the RNC I most likely will voice my opinion again or will not continue my involvement with the list. Such is democracy and undoubtedly it would have little impact. This is how organizations work and I don’t begrudge the owners of the list their right to decide its direction. My intent was just to point out that there was a direction being taken.

With this post and as a #TCOT member I did want to add one last bit of public input about what I believe the immediate future direction for #TCOT should be and why I questioned MPL’s actions in the first place. Aside from a principled opposition to his actions I had strategic concerns. With only 1500 members on #TCOT, several of whom are simply Twitter accounts whose owners are not very engaged and some of whom rarely discuss conservative issues at all and show no desire to truly be engaged, I believe MPL jumped the gun on making demands of the RNC chair.

The Internet is a vast universe that, like our greater universe, is divided into large clumps of matter that exist between light years of empty space. This is to say, while many people are online and active there are only a few places that have enough mass to claim real gravitational pull. #TCOT and in many ways the Twitter service is not a galaxy in this universe but a tiny cluster of stars in an expanding and changing cosmos.

Before any small band of like-minded thinkers can become a movement it must take steps to refine itself. I believe MPL overstepped his bounds not just in giving the perception that 1500 followers behind him were marching in lock step, but in believing that this small band empowered him to make lofty demands or to take great offense when they were not acknowledged.

The #TCOT Web site currently advertises a list of Action Projects for the community that range from the mundane to the absurd. Necessary projects like recruiting are mixed with outlandish projects like “Accelerated Churchillian Development” or what is touted as the creation of conservative “curriculum for liberals age 14 to 30.”

Meanwhile the site’s Top List of Conservatives or the entire impetus of this budding organization is almost unmanageable. There is no way to sort the growing list, no way to refine its look, no way to ensure that it can be successfully used for any kind of real political action or organizing and no distinction between those who are heavily followed and those who actually contribute to an ongoing discussion of conservative ideals.

Some of the followers of those on the list are spammers whose accounts have been banned but still exist in limbo. I have personally witnessed that adding some of the lists users will result in waves of those spammers turning their attention onto the new follower. This is not only a future security problem but inflates the follower numbers of many on the list and gives a false perception of how big the actual reach and grasp of the list really is.

These are some of the issues that must be refined for #TCOT to be taken seriously or before it can even begin to consider tackling an action item like creating a “Conservative Majority by 2010.” I believe the same enthusiasm shown for tackling the larger issues must be turned to the mundane issues that are important for an organization to carry real weight and to grow.

MPL often notes his belief that #TCOT can become the MoveOn.org of conservatives. The parallel is hardly fitting as MoveOn was started by two very wealthy individuals who were able to plow through the initial obstacles of a “grassroots” organization by throwing money at their problems and devoting their time and fortune exclusively to the project. This cannot be ignored. Many “grassroots” movements that appear to have grown from nothing are often highly organized and well funded campaigns that are held together not by happenstance but hard cash and experienced facilitators with larger institutional resources.

At this point #TCOT is banking on real grassroots growth. Volunteers are sought to run projects and the sites are kept as labors of love. As far as I know millions of dollars are not fueling its development.

If #TCOT is to succeed and grow honest dialogue must be maintained and reasoned group positions and reasonable goals must be undertaken by the entire community at large. Decisions made by a dozen or two dozen members on a conference call who then present a worldview where thousands of followers are behind them is not only inaccurate but counterproductive.

As I said in my last post this is not about MPL or Mike Duncan, not about any desire to usurp the intent of the #TCOT list or community but an exploration of my concerns for the site and its followers. This list could grow into a very powerful resource in the coming year but there is no guarantee of success and currently nothing about its makeup that justifies any form of indignation when lofty or unreasonable demands are made of the larger conservative community or Republican establishment are not met or ignored.

I would with the best for #TCOT and all conservative online efforts but plan to always lend not just constructive participation but constructive criticism to their actions.