A year ago I couldn't even spell jernalist

Today I are one! OK, I've dabbled in journalism before, but it's been a while and it was mostly in the tech trade press. Today my first article has been published at Personal Democracy Forum, Meetup Says Put Up or Shutdown:

On April 12, Meetup.com dropped a bomb on its users: the online group organizing service announced that it would now charge group organizers monthly fees. The notification has forced political campaigns and issue advocacy groups to consider alternative methods for mobilizing their supporters. It's already prompted an exodus among some organizers who have since resigned from their roles managing Meetup groups.

The previously free Web service is widely credited with helping Howard Dean’s Democratic Presidential primary campaign spread virally, and take its online mojo offline into local communities across the U.S. But now Meetup needs to develop a sustainable revenue stream, and its decision to charge group organizers using the system to schedule and promote local, in-person meetings has been a hard pill for many to swallow.

Go over there and read the rest!