What's the Point

The second issue with writing this post has to do with figuring out why I need to write it in the first place.

I keep coming back to "for my own clarity", and it's mostly for the following reasons:

I don't like to write something that is essentially saying "ditto" to what's already out there.  There's no value added, unless it's adding one more grain of sand or one more straw to a given point of view.  Yes, sheer weight does have a value of it's own.

Still, if I see that others have said the same things (and often better), I don't really see the point in adding my two cents. 

And some of what I planned to write - well, for the bulk of Americans they're kind of "no duh".  The problem is, for a small subset of our population, it isn't.  So I can add my weight to the mountain of people who agree that (as an example): the Republican tax plan sucks (not that tax reform itself is a bad idea, just this particular attempt at it) , or that net neutrality matters (or at least not ending it in this boneheaded way), or that we should do something about the shrinking of the middle class, or that we should decriminalize marijuana...but then it's another "ditto" post...

Or I could try to explore why the heck someone in power would say something like this:

“I think not having the estate tax recognizes the people that are investing, as opposed to those that are just spending every penny they have, whether it’s on booze or women or movies,” he told the paper.

Those types of posts are mostly just guesswork, though, as it's not like I have one-on-one conversations with anyone in the top 1%. 

And I'm not sure that what I say would make a difference to anyone who was.  Like - if they're in so much of a bubble that they honestly don't see the problems here, it's because they're not really looking.  Don't care to look. 

Have no incentive to look.

Or maybe they look, and acknowledge the problems, but their proposed solutions will only exacerbate things.

Either way, what's the point in writing for some fictional one-percenter?

So these days I'm writing either because I see something I can uniquely contribute, or I'm waiting until the swirling jumble of ideas are at the point where I need to jot them down.  There's a clarity that comes from writing a blog post that I just can't get if I don't. 

I know when I was younger I disregarded the idea that journaling mattered, but since I started blogging I've changed my mind.  Writing these things down helps me connect thoughts in a way I just can't otherwise.  I get the beginnings, generally, but then life happens.  It's time to do homework, or make dinner, or what-have-you...and they all just blow away.  I don't get to delve that deep into them.

Writing it down, however, lets me make connections and dig deeper.

So anyways, on to the latest bit of mindstorm.