I caught up on 40Brown's Live Blog where Daniel Bennett, co-author of the Net Effect and consultant for elected representatives and non-profit organizations, started off by quoting,
Software and laws are like sausages- they're good, but you shouldn't see them being made!
(Personally, I like to know what my sausage is made of.)
Daniel cleared up some misunderstandings and myths in Internet Communications between Congress and constituents.