Your post puts into perspective something I have been following the past couple of days. I have been very impressed at the changes in democratic engagement through the white house website (www.whitehouse.gov). It is my new favorite site just because I love seeing the level of participation from so many voices that seem to have been silenced by the main stream media. In particular was a link to a blog written by a housewife in Utah who has been debating the role of the government in the healthcare system with her conservative husband. There are two posts, one from the Husband and one from the wife.

I think this demonstrates more than being or becoming. Another dimension that the new technology creates is legitimizing. What I mean by this is a person feels as if they have a voice that is allowed to be expressed and SOMEONE will hear. I'm not sure legitimizing is the right word, but there is something going on that gives a person a place in this world in relationship to others. This goes beyond being and becoming, and places someone within a system or network.