I hadn’t planned on an extended writing break. Life, however, insisted on inserting its two bits; the result being neither time nor energy to compose deathless blogging prose.

There was also the minor detail of not finding anything all that interesting to write about. Post-election blahs, perhaps. Or online battle fatigue. Most likely both.

I’ve been working on weaning myself from involvement in, or so much as interest in, various skirmishes that crop up in the never-ending Twitterati internecine war. They have proved surprisingly useful in one respect, namely how they have revealed the genuine character of many. Which, frankly, has proved disappointingly wanting in an alarming number of those on the right. The belief that shared political ideology is carte blanche to do as one pleases, including full-blown lying about yourself and others, is not one I can share. I am becoming ever more cognizant of why staunch conservatives have run, not walked, away from any involvement with the conservative blogosphere and why it is held in such little regard by the old guard. It has oft been said that by nature politics is a blood sport. However, I decline to either spill mine, or let others spill it, over non-issues fiercely fought over by those seemingly intent on turning themselves into non-people.

The notion that blind allegiance is required to all self-appointed conservative new media leaders; that so much as the slightest whisper against one is doubtless part of a grand leftist conspiracy and that any question, no matter how sincere or non-accusatory, of anyone considered to be part of the aforementioned conservative new media leaders (translation: Konservative Kool Kidz Klub) must be met not with answers but rather butthurt and vicious ostracization is so ludicrous as to be laughable. Yet this is the exact situation with which we are presently confronted. Even those who should know better are sucked into this meme, either standing by silent or offering tacit approval as lies are promulgated and those whose sole “crime” is being a cyberspace boy at the end of the parade of the emperor’s new clothes are shredded. And people wonder why we lost the election.

Nothing disarms an enemy faster than honesty. Few things discourage an individual more than attacks from those ostensibly on the same side. Even fewer things disparage a cause, philosophy or belief more than those who preach one thing yet live another.

There are few actions less respectable than making excuses for another. Each of us should give our own account for our own actions, accepting full responsibility for what we say, think and do. When third parties interject themselves into a discussion or disagreement between two people for the purpose of choosing a side, said person is useless to truth’s cause.

With these truths as a foundation, an examination of people and events reveals an alarming fallback on the “public performance providing absolution from personal responsibility” fallacy. The mindset for this belief runs along these lines: “I am doing a great public service by (fill in blank). Therefore, how I conduct my personal affairs is irrelevant, because my great public service is so great, good and necessary that as long as I am performing it everything else is ancillary and insignificant.” It is a mindset that excuses behavior without honor.

It is becoming ever more apparent that I need to separate myself from such people; those who claim to be journalists or, at the least, do journalistic work yet have traded the journalist’s motto of “if your mother says she loves you, check it out” to “because I said so.” Doing so, of course, means forever discarding all hope of being inducted into the KKKK. No CPAC Bloggers Lounge access for me! (Not that I can readily afford to go anyway.)

Still, I have hope. If I pursue a path of speaking quietly yet assuredly about conservative principles and values, applying them to current issues and maintaining an environment of calm respect throughout, perhaps my modest scribblings will earn a wider audience. It is definitely the road less traveled, refusing to engage in raging outrage over every perceived outrage. But it’s the only way I can go while still maintaining my sanity and the ability to look at myself in the mirror.

There are matters so much more important than politics. Faith, family and friends to name three. It needs to be for these reasons I write, not a paycheck or eye toward grabbing a bigger slice of the finite pie that is conservative new journalism. If I speak to but a few, so be it. May I reward their readership by speaking well.

As for the rest, the late Andrew Breitbart summarized it nicely:

P.S. As noted above, there are elements of life far more important than politics: