Even in this economy, blogs are being re-designed (Sorry, I couldn’t resist the most overused phrase in journalism.)

I hope you like my second attempt at Political Equinox - it’s certainly brighter. Our website is approaching just about a year and a half of operation and unless you are really quick or still have an old copy of the website on your computer you’ll be seeing Version 2.

The redesign is largely white and minimalist because we wanted the focus to be on the content we will be producing over the coming weeks. I believe I can speak for both Patrick and myself in saying we’ve been a bit lax about ensuring that content appears on Political Equinox frequently. However we’re committed to making this venture a successful one and we hope that you will stay along for the ride.

We’re going to aim for 2-3 posts a week with more depth, links to additional resources, videos & diagrams, and maybe even a few interviews. There are lots of new ideas flowing around and I’m glad I’m able to put the stamp on this design and get back to writing.

Launching in 3…2…1….

In the coming weeks you’ll see the face of Political Equinox change as the website is redesigned and then relaunched with a strict editorial schedule that ensures fresh content continually making its way to our readers.

You may not see a post until that redesign…forgive our silence.

Patrick and I planted the seeds in January having no idea as to where we were going, but today we announce another turn in the road. Patrick and I are proud to announce that Mr. Eric Gonzaba will join Political Equinox as the third member of our team.

I met Eric two years ago in Future Business Leaders of America, where he went on to destroy me in a run for President of the Indiana chapter. Despite our differences in some areas of policy, he shares views with both myself and Patrick in that we look for a solution that best serves instead of clinging to “party values.”

Eric is a freshman at Indiana University studying history and, surprise, political science. Eric leans left like Patrick, but he’s grown tired of the “conservative” and “liberal” labels and instead terms himself a “progressive.”

Both Patrick and I look forward to seeing Eric’s work appear here on Political Equinox. He will offer us a new level of depth, especially with respect to the Supreme Court – a subject on which Eric skillfully declares himself a “junkie.” Speaking that he hopes to attend law school, I’d say that Eric has picked the right topic to study. We expect great things from Eric and you will not be disappointed.

Look for Eric’s work to begin appearing throughout the next week or so as he warms up to the new system.

Welcome Eric! We hope you’re ready for the ride.

For the past month or so Neil has had to fend for himself…by ‘fend,’ I mean do all of the posting. I want to explain why I was gone.

For the month of July I had the wonderful opportunity to work in the Press Office of Senator Bayh in Washington DC. I learned a lot from his very professional and experienced staffers and am happy they allowed me to work there. Out of respect to the office I won’t say anymore about the job.

But I’m really happy to be able to post again especially since this already lengthy and historically large presidential campaign will only get longer, larger and even more historic!

I know things have been awful quiet around these parts lately, but that’s because we’ve been hard at work on our new design for Political Equinox. We’ll be tweaking things over the next few weeks and there are probably quite a few parts that aren’t exactly working correctly at the moment. Be sure to let us know if you notice anything wrong and we’ll be sure to fix it right away.

…but, I will be attending the 2008 Republican National Convention.

I will not be a delegate (ha) nor (much to my chagrin) did I get credentials for blogging. I will, however, be working for NBC as a ‘runner’. Although as of yet I do not have a real job description for the position of ‘runner’, I believe my title implies that 1. I will be doing odd jobs like getting coffee or moving something from one place to another and 2. I will be busy most of the time.

Nevertheless I will be working behind the scenes to get things setup so everyone can see the party that will loose in November nominate their candidate who will lead them to defeat. I will recount what I do as a ‘runner’ daily on the blog as well as detail any interesting encounters I have (as a person who holds beliefs diametrically opposite to many of the individuals who will be there, I think my encounters will be interesting to say the least).

I am told I should bring a camera and will upload those images to the Political Equinox Photos page (as long as Neil can remind me how it works). Look for more info as the date gets closer.

Although I desperately wanted to go to the Democratic Convention, It coincides with the beginning of what most call ‘school’ and I have a couple responsibilities there I cannot overlook.

Today at 1:48 AM Political Equinox survived its first equinox. For those of you in Fort Wayne, that means we will start our Spring with a Winter Storm Warning – how wonderful!

Thank you for stumbling onto Political Equinox ñ a blog dedicated to a balanced examination of the major issues of our time.

About the Editors

You can read the full biographies about the editors on the About page.

Patrick McAlister is sophomore at Wabash College in Crawfordsville, IN. He politically tends to lean towards the left; he believes in an emphasis on strong public education, equal protection under the law, and helping those in need. He is also, however, a strong proponent for government efficiency and strongly dislikes government excess and waste.

Neil Kelty is senior at Carroll High School. Republican values tend to dominate his political leanings embracing lower, simpler taxes and smaller government, in terms of efficiency. Neil is also strong in his beliefs that public education is held back by continuous testing of the students rather than teaching.While both authors remain in their young adult years, we see this as an advantage. Our generation is the future of this country. Our desires serve as the foundation for a country to come. We do not just talk about the future. We are the future.

Why the name Political Equinox?

The name may need some explanation: An ‘equinox’ is defined as:ìEither of the two times during a year when the sun crosses the celestial equator and when the length of day and night are approximately equalîThis is our intention with political discourseÖ.except not limited to two times per year. Each of this blogís editors has a relatively different philosophy when coming to the table to discuss politics ñ one leans towards the left, the other leans to the right. Neither would consider themselves extremists; rather, each is looking for the best solution to political questions of the time ñ an attempt to find the balanced, perhaps ëequinoctialí solution.

Oh, the places we hope to go…

We intend this blog to encompass not only discussion not only on local, state and national politics, but also on economics, on excellent articles, blogs and books we have come across.We will even post some personal political experiences each will have. Patrick will soon be traveling to Iowa to experience the final frenzy filled days of the Iowa Caucus and will post original content from that experience.We are excited to begin this journey, and sincerely hope the blog community at large will be a part of our search for political balance.