Brian Beutler, Washington D.C. Political Blogger, Shot


I want to give a shout out to Brian Beutler of Media Consortium who was shot last night in Adams Morgan. I wrote on it over at Washington Hotlist a few minutes ago.

I have never met Brian. I hope to some day and chances are good since he’s in stable condition and expected to make a full recovery.

Brian is part of the political blogosphere that those of us covering technology rarely get to see because worlds don’t overlap. However, they should. If there’s anything the recent trip to Washington D.C. by Robert Scoble shows, it’s that our world in tech is very much affected by the policies established by the government. Political bloggers fill that niche and we should be paying attention to them, especially now during the political season.

Tragedy is never welcome. It was only 7 months ago today that my friend and fellow blogger, Marc Orchant, passed away suddenly in his home office. That rocked the entire tech space, as it should have. This hits closer to home, for me, because it’s in Washington, and more specifically Adams Morgan where I spend a good deal of time.

Folks, we cannot live in fear. District officials will point to this and other acts of violence and rattle the cages of people, just like the Bush Administration has done concerning terrorism. We cannot live in fear. We cannot let this control our lives.

Brian, I am praying for a speedy recovery. I’ll be paying closer attention to you and your writing, and I expect you’ll have a great many things to say about this. I’m glad you’re okay. Get better.4781A4CE-A563-4DE6-BF82-8D5E0C8A8AC0.jpg

Photo Credit: myglesias