Shameless Pandering (bumped)

[I bumped this up because it's a great post looking at the growth and impact of milblogs.  And this is the last week of hotel discounts through the conference, although anyone with a military ID can get even bigger discounts direct from the hotels.  And Andi is still holding out on us with one more big name.  You really don't want to miss this! - FbL]

Shameless plug time - Blogworld Expo, with the concurrent Milblogging Conference as a  component part, is looming in a month!  While yes, the venue has changed to Las Vegas from DC, the conference itself is free this year - and that will get you access to the exhibit hall, too - which means you can hang out with all the kewl kids, and see and meet bloggers you read, but otherwise dont' get a chance to interact with - and I'm talking *all* the Big Kidz, because the Poliblogging guys and gals will be there too - and the place we'll mix is the exhibit hall.

And the two previous Milblogger Conferences prior to this were part and parcel of how we got here.

This year, I'm moderating the "Are Milblogs Still Relevant?" panel. I'm taking the postion of "Yes, they are..." but that's going to be hard to support if all y'all don't show up, eh?

Take a look at who's going to be there:

JP Borda
Matt Burden
John Donovan
FbL
General George Casey
Liberal Army Wife
Greyhawk and Mrs. G
Guard Wife
CJ Grisham
Sarah
Toby Nunn
Bill Roggio
The Honorable Pete Geren
Ward Carroll

If you look through that list there are auld pharts (me) young buck deployed warfighting mibloggers (JP Borda, Toby Nunn), Big Dogs (Blackfive and Greyhawk), Senior NCOs (CJ), Fort Living Room is well represented (Mrs G, Guard Wife, Liberal Army Wife, Sarah).  The Troop Supporters (FbL), the professional milbloggers (Ward Carroll, Bill Roggio), oh, and yeah, a senior officer (Chief of Staff, Army, General Casey) and senior civilian leaders (Secretary of the Army, the Honorable Pete Geren)...

One reason the Army (and DoD) has a more aggressive posture on the 'net is because of... us - you and I. We whined, pleaded, cajoled, darkly muttered in the comments- and most importantly, *performed.*  And, bemusing the Old Media, we got their attention (both of 'em, DoD *and* the Eld Media), on how the New Media is a complement to the Old Media - and a way around the Gray Lady and similar gatekeepers.  We proved ourselves able to be responsible adults, and not out-of-control moonbats.  Even if we do have fun now and again.

It's significant, folks, who has chosen to talk to us (as when President Bush was our opening speaker last year) and with us - VADM Fox, who did a back and forth with us from Baghdad, live, last year. and this year, the two senior officials of the US Army, the Secretary and Chief of Staff,  are going to speak with us, interactively - and, are giving up time on a weekend to do it...  that's a respect we've earned, and it didn't come easy - nor should it have.

I spent my childhood and adult life around and later as a member of the Army.  I met a few Chiefs of Staff.  But I never had 'em sit down and talk with me for any significant length of time.  Much less the President. 

So, come be a part of milblogging - and see if we behave as, er, um, *interestingly* in the flesh as some previous reports might indicate...  and this is a chance to see it all happen live, with you as a participant.

So, come on to Las Vegas, and meet the people who put it out there every day - and meet each other, you guys - because it's you, our readers, that make us something other than some guys with opinions who hang around the water cooler.