About page

"Happiness to the people through good blogging" is the underlying ideal behind this site.

Brainshrub.com is an experimental political blog with counterpoints for critical thinkers, and, a journal for my own activism. The goal of this site is to see if a blog can be more than a just place to rant at strangers or an ATM for political candidates.

The underling question I am attempting to answer is: "How much social change can one person, armed only with a blog, accomplish?"

To find out, this site not only features "normal" blog posts, but also special projects, audio interviews, experimental writing styles and guest bloggers.

---

FAQ

1) Who are you?

I am a writer living in Asheville, NC. I'm currently employed as a reporter and I also do some blog consulting to make ends meet.

Here is everything else you need to know about me:

2) Do you have editorial policy?

Yes. You can read the Brainshrub.com editorial policy here.

3) Who is the cat in the banner?

That is Scooter, an extremely wise cat owned by a close friend of mine. Scooter is a critical thinker on par with the greatest minds in history.

The people in the banner are (From left to right): Socrates, George Orwell, Mark Twain, Scooter the Cat, Noam Chomsky and Carl Sagan.

4) Where did you come up with the name "Brainshrub"?

The word "Brainshrub" has nothing to do with the nick-name of the President of the United States.

The inspiration came from an observation that the common shrub is hardier and more versatile than most trees: Mighty oaks fall in harsh winds where shrubs stay firmly rooted. Fires destroy whole forests while shrubs are survivors who regenerate once the flames have passed.

Shrubs are able to thrive in deserts and cities alike; Perhaps this is why God chose to reveal himself to Moses as a shrub?

Responsible citizens of a Democracy should strive to develop their minds to be as adaptable, hardy and creative as a shrub. A brainshrub.

5) How may I contact you?

Use the "Contact" link at the top of the page. You can also shoot me an email: brainshrub -a-t- gmail dot com. Be aware that I have an extremely aggressive anti-spam protocol, so if you don't get a response it's possible that my software has tagged your message as spam. (Especially if you send e-mail newsletters.)

If you are unable to contact me via email, try to send me an IM via the Yahoo Messenger. My Yahoo ID is: "brainshrub".

6) I don't see a counterpoint for "X" blog entry.

Not every post will have a counterpoint. For example, the Link Scan posts don't have them. Some special projects may not have counterpoints either.

7) The counterpoint you used was not good enough. Why didn't you link to "X" or find an article that stated "Y"?

I do my best to find content that counters my own views or contradicts the headline; Sometimes it's difficult to find a perfect devils-advocate. It can be next to impossible, for example, to find someone who has something nice to say about nuclear waste.

All readers, regardless of personal politics, are welcome to suggest their own counterpoints in the comments.

8) When do you close comments?

I used to automatically close comments after 30 days. Now threads will remain open unless a post get attacked heavily with spam, it gets too long, or, if Godwin's Law is invoked.

Having said this, if you have something important to say in a thread that has been closed feel free to email it to me. If I feel it's relevant, I'll post it for you.

9) How can I be a guest blogger?

First things first: I can't pay you. (Sorry I don't make enough money.)

Second: You, of course, can get credit for your writing. Or you can write anonymously. I'll edit your piece, and if I feel I've made significant changes I'll let you see it before it gets posted.

Third: You don't need to have a progressive point of view to be published here. Brainshrub.com welcomes submissions on a variety of topics, provided they are well written and astute. Do not send articles that you did not write yourself.

Fourth: I will usually not notify you if your article has been rejected. Generally speaking I publish articles within two weeks of receiving them.

Fifth: All work must come with a serious counterpoint that contradicts or challenges what you wrote. (Read through this site to see what I am talking about.)

10) This site is not objective!

Objectivity is not the goal of this site. The mission of Brainshrub.com is to be a political blog that encourages critical thinking. By not hiding behind the pretense of objectivity, readers are better able to discern for themselves what they should think.

On a personal note, my problem with the mainstream media isn't that they are bias - it's that they pretend they aren't.

Last edit: 03/25/2007 @ 09:45 EST.