Reading Paul Rosenberg's article on Marketing and the Right Wing Message Machine is a frustrating thing. It brings home to me that we on the left don't have nearly the tools that they do. But this being the end of one year and the beginning of another, I thought I might lay out a few things that we can all do in 2006, even though we might not have the access of a Judy Miller. (And who knows what new tools we might get with the mydd site redesign!)

• Bring Air America to your local airwaves. Read this dailykos diary on how to get an Air America affiliate in your town. Could start organizing online or with friends, at a local Dem party or DFA meeting, anyplace where likeminded progressives gather. You don't need an army either - 6 people got the ball rolling in Baton Rouge.

• Help organize your state and local blogosphere. Start up a statewide blog or get involved in an existing blog - one place to start is SoapBlox. Read DavidNYC's post on setting up a blog for every congressional district. It's easy to do - and you can help drive coverage of an issue and/or person into the mainstream if your research is good or your insight is unique. Plus it feels good to bring some of the icky backroom votes and behavior out into the daylight! This is something you can do by yourself or with others. Also be sure to check out Lefty Blogs and District Blogs to see if your state and/or district has bloggers already you can team up with. Help local candidates too, many may be completely unfamiliar with Internet-enabled campaigns.

• Follow your local media. Subscribe to the local papers, listen to the local radio talk shows, watch local TV coverage. If you see slanted or missing coverage, push back. Track down the contact information for Letters to the Editor or Op Eds next year, and some local talk radio stations to call in to. Also if they're looking for contributors, commentators and/or bloggers, sign yourself up!

• For extra credit: Put on your own local public access cable or radio show. Or start up your own zine/newspaper, or do podcasts.

What's your prescription for 2006?