The diary below was orginally posted in my blog, the Intrepid Liberal Journal.

The progressive blogosphere resembles an extended family. It's remarkable how we interact and become acquainted with personalities from around the globe. Between blogrolls and soapblox community sites we come across so many and relationships form. Yet even as we bond over shared values it's easy to forget that behind our cocksure Internet personas reside flesh and blood human beings.

One such blogger is Bob Higgins. Bob's Worldwide Sawdust blog was surging as of late August. He had established a niche as a poignant and irreverent voice championing working people, justice and peace. There is a lot of talent in the blogosphere but for me Bob is a cut above. Bob is a rare gem that can make you laugh and think simultaneously.

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The interview below took place on Sunday, July 9th and was originally posted in my blog, the Intrepid Liberal Journal.

The 11th Congressional District in Brooklyn, New York is a human mosaic of 654,000: 60 percent blacks, 20 percent whites, 12 percent Hispanics, 4 percent Asians and 4 percent other ethnicities. The minorities, mostly Caribbean Americans and other immigrants, comprise 80 percent of the district.

This district is historically significant because it was created pursuant to the Voting Rights Act. In 1968, the 11th elected the first black woman to Congress - Shirley Chisholm. Since then the predominantly black population has been represented in Washington by one of their own. The incumbent, Major R. Owens is retiring after serving in Congress since 1984. An African-American, Representative Owens is highly regarded among progressives for his commitment to strengthening public education.

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[Crossposted at My Left Wing and Daily Kos.]

First of all, I've been holding on to this diary idea for months -- every since I discovered the Townhouse list from a MyDD diary.  I've been waiting for what seemed like the right moment, the right atmosphere, to post this.  Now it's arrived, thanks to this excellent diary by the inimitable Maryscott O'Connor, with whom I am completely in agreement.  Something IS rotten in Blogmark; in fact, it has been rotten for some time, at least since the Pie fight and maybe before.  But I digress.

What I want to talk about here is something that I think has been chipping away at the integrity of the blogosphere for months, and that has become a serious, potentially catastrophic issue for the blogosphere at large.  My goal here is not to attack or demean anybody, simply to enlighten and to give my opinion, inconsequential as it may be.

This diary is about the Townhouse list.

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As a teenager in the 1980s, I listened to conservative talk radio host Bob Grant on WABC. That was the most hateful person I've ever heard. I remember one broadcast when a black gentleman called in and asked, "Mr. Grant why don't you just admit that you're prejudiced and hate blacks?" Grant snapped, "I am not prejudiced! Now get the hell off my phone you spade!"

Naïve idealist that I was, I called into to the Bob Grant show a few times. I actually believed I could engage this grown up in a civil conversation based upon facts and logic.

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