Archive for: March, 2006

Online Organizing

Mar 23 2006 Published by under Democrats, Politics

PoliticsThere is a big difference between the GOP effort online and the Democrats online. In 2004, we organized a national house-to-house day. We had people get a walk list of their neighbors and go door-to-door through their streets and towns to spread the message.

The Democrats kept asking for money.

Not much has changed, it seems. The Democrats want to blanket America with door hangers, but rather than asking their online supporters to take part, they’re just asking for a check. The most recent e-mail from the DNC wants your wallet:

We estimate that we need to print 500,000 pieces of literature to cover these events. With the cost of printing, plus the cost of shipping, staff time and logistics to make these events happen, we need an investment of $107,000 by Monday in order to kick-start this program.

They have the money (barely) to cover the door hangers, but time after time, electoral performance indicates the one thing they don’t have is the manpower to deliver results. They would be better off signing people up to help, rather than issuing another pathetic plea for cash. Apparently we have to wait until next week to hear how we might be able to help other than by credit card or check.

When your being outplayed on the ground, why beg for money in every single e-mail you send? They proved in 2004 that more money doesn’t equate to winning.

It’s also kind of telling that Howard Dean wants to be called governor and doctor, but isn’t identified as the Chairman of the DNC. I guess he thinks leading his party is beneath his other titles.

Full text of the e-mail after the jump.

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Supporting Candidates May Have Gotten Easier

Mar 23 2006 Published by under Politics, Technology, The Internet

PoliticsTechnologyPayPal has announced a new service that will let you make payments via text messages. Lose a bet to a friend? Text “Send 50 to 703-555-1212″ to 729725 and you will have given 50 bucks to directory assistance. If you use your friend’s number, though, it will go to him.

It could be an interesting add-on to small donor giving in politics. If you could text message money to your candidate of choice, it would make political giving much easier. It probably still won’t make people care, though.

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Geek Your Way To Success

Mar 23 2006 Published by under Gaming, Society

Video GamingMissed the domain name gold rush? Didn’t get on the dot com bubble boom and make your first billion at 25? Spent too much time playing Nintendo, PlayStation and Xbox and lost a few girlfriends in the process? Well have no fear, corporate recruiters are looking for you. At least according to Wired magazine they are.

Spend time playing video games and you can rocket to the top of middle management because video games create leaders.

Sure they do…

Nobody I have ever seen living in his basement, playing SOCOM online and getting stoned on cheap weed will ever be promoted to a senior position at Yahoo. Though they may eventually run for Congress…

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Faulty Assumptions

Mar 22 2006 Published by under Government

General Pace was surprised by the Iraqi resistance to a central government.

We have moved so far from our roots as a nation that we are making fundamentally flawed assumptions about the nature of democracy. It does not surprise me that our assumptions about Iraqi opposition to a central government were far off the mark.

It’s sad, though. We lived under tyrannical rule and when we broke the yoke, we opted for a small federal government that could not abuse us that way again. Now, we’ve become so used to the chains of our government that we automatically assume the Iraqis would like to share them.

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Funds To The Right, None To The Left

Mar 22 2006 Published by under Democrats, Government, Politics, Republicans, Waste

GovernmentPoliticsMy daily perusal of WaPo turned me onto an overly ambitious piece of pap from Thomas Edsall complaining of the 140 million that is being spent on things like abstinence education. Apparently these funds would never have been spent under the Democrats, and it is just outrageous. At least that’s the gist I got from reading Edsall’s article.

Of course, the trouble is that number pales in comparison to the piles of government money Democrats used to keep their machinery running when they had the wheels of power. The Democrats used government largesse to fund their left wing cogs for years, and I don’t recall the MSM paying much attention. It was primarily the conservative commentators and columnists that would draw attention to taxpayer dollars that funded urine submerged crucifixes.

Now, though, things have changed. The fact that an administration would spend taxpayer dollars in line with its priorities seems to upset Mr. Edsall. Honestly, it upsets me too, but not because I disagree with the spending – which I do. I think abstinence education is absurd. It ignores the reality of horny teenagers.

But I oppose it on a completely different ground.

I’d like to see, anywhere in Edsall’s writing, an allegation that the flow of money to these groups has, in any way, led to the drying up of cash for the liberal groups that used to get it. But it hasn’t. Liberal favorites like the NEA are still getting money, and are actually getting more money.

I don’t care if you want to throw money at groups that advocate for issues and practices that have no hope of succeeding. When the Democrats get to drive again, they can hit the brakes on spending for conservative groups (and don’t for a moment think they won’t).

What bugs me is the GOP’s refusal to staunch the flow of cash to the liberals. Cut funds for the liberal groups that have failed to succeed for 4o years or more. Then you can spend it all on our failed policies.

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