Dem Strategist: Making a Difference

[Dem_Strategist]

Thanks to everyone for your many PM's. I simply can't answer all of them, but there are some excellent suggestions in there.

To those who find my tone condescending, you are completely misreading me. I'm not going to say much more about this, as I've said several times that I mean no offense. If I didn't respect your opinion, I wouldn't be here.

Time is of the essence. Those of you who have strategic advice, or who know more than the campaign, or who have already done everything I've suggested and are irritated by my advice, why don't you do the following:

Since I've gotten hundreds of different suggestions from this message board alone, tell me who precisely should be listened to here, and why them and not, say, any of the thousands of others who send the campaign advice. Form an advisory board or a strategy group and have that strategy group analyze the mistakes you think the campaign has made and how you would have done better.

Get transcripts of tv shows where Dem surrogates have been less than impressive. Deconstruct their answers and come up with alternate responses. Elaborate on the techniques used by Republican guests and hosts, and explain in detail why the Dems' responses are inadequate.

Create a document that breaks it down into easy-to-read bullets, issue it on a regular basis. Start a collectively-run website that focuses on exactly this issue. Task small groups to focus on different issues. In other words, ORGANIZE.

Otherwise, yelling at me is useless. I'm just one person doing everything in my power (including doing my best to harness the power of blogs and message boards like this) to defeat Bush and elect a man who will be an exceptional president, John Kerry. Everyone at the campaign is working as hard and well as they know how to.

************

Back to the media: many have asked if their efforts have made a difference. The answer is an unequivocal YES. Every letter, every email matters. You never know which one gets through, and who it gets through to, but holding the media accountable is priority number one.

Be creative. There are always new ways to get attention, and the Internet is a great medium. Which is why I call you (and myself) online activists.

*************

Has the campaign made mistakes? Of course. A campaign is a collection of individuals of differing capabilities and skills. Some get it, some don't, some sort of do. Some are brilliant some of the time, and less than brilliant other times. Some are inventive, others are not, but make up for it with passion and conviction and hard work. Some are experienced, others are relatively new to the game. But they all are on the right side of this election, fighting for an important cause.

*************

Last but not least, please don't assume the campaign hasn't done something just because the media filter blocks it. And if you think the campaign doesn't have a rapid response team (or more than one), you're profoundly mistaken. And if you think it's been ineffectual, just ask yourself where this election COULD be at this point considering America's bogus, fucked up, irresponsible media.

Signing off for now. (Again, I apologize about leaving questions hanging, but I do read most of the responses during the course of my day.)

[Keirsey]

1. question

Are you aware/on top of this:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1191892/posts


Really just an FYI - not looking for an answer because I know the opposition reads these threads.

[NMDemDist2]

2. ick! why do I click those links?

:spank:

[jean]

3. This looks like a job for DU! What better way to hone our organizational

skills than to help Del Sandusky?!

This is only one day - next Wednesday - what can we do to support and protect Mr Sandusky from incoming freep?

"The highest ranking enlisted man on Democratic Presidential candidate John Kerry's U.S. Navy swift boat in Vietnam, Clearwater resident Del Sandusky, will visit three north central Florida sites next Wednesday."
http://www.starbanner.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040815/NEWS/208150352/1001/FEATURES01


freeper comments:

Paging ALL central and north Florida FReepers:
OK folks, here's our OPPORTUNITY to FReep this Kerry prostitute

- - -

It would be great to hear what this crewman has to say in an unscripted environment where the handlers can't have as much control. First and foremost, let's hear about the trips to "Cambodia." Even knowing who accompanies this guy will be instructive. Any chance there is a FReeper in the area?

- - -

I wish someone would show up and read the part from Kerry's Senate testimony about the war crimes (beheadings, etc.) that he accused our GIs of systematically committing, and ask Mr. Sandusky whether Sen. Kerry's sworn testimony was the truth or a lie.

- - -

Perhaps some local, or not so local, Freepers could send some documentation to members of those three organizations Sandusky will be visiting, arming them with both the imformation we, and others have, and some to the point questions?

- - -

Sandusky is very unimpressive from a public relations standpoint, and all suggestions to ask him about the 180 medical release form, the atrocities, etc are a damned good idea.

- - -

Kerry is going before the VFW on Wed... plan on some major stunt from him to "seek healing" and "put this controversy behind us."
Be prepared. The reason they've hidden on vacation for two days is to find a way to extricate themselves from this mess.

- - -

Any FReepers in the area a disabled vet so you would have access to that meeting? I'm sure you could help the group with the right questions to ask.

[volosong]

60. Important - Media & Letter Writing

For those motivated enough to help Kerry-Edwards by be expressing your views and their messages to newspapers, TV stations, news services, etc., be sure to include your telephone number.

They almost never call you, but most will not publish without your telephone number (which they will keep private).

This link http://congress.org/congressorg/dbq/media/

suggests that a telephone number is optional. It really isn't


Also, if you check the "remember me" box below your essay, it will save all your personal data thereby vastly speeding up the submitting process

[Crunchy Frog]

4. Thank you for your post.

I am glad to hear that you are open to feedback and suggestions and not just here to be a one way conduit from the Kerry campaign. I hope you can understand some of the reasons behind many people's recent frustrations with the Democratic Party.

It would be nice if you could address the sentiment among some people here that all advice, suggestions, expressions of concern, and constructive criticism are bad and do nothing but undermine Kerry's campaign.

Many people seem to equate these things with attacks on the candidate. It sounds to me like you see some real potential value in these things, and it would probably be reassuring to some people to hear that from you.

Thank you for all your hard work on behalf of our country, and I hope your recent forays in here haven't felt too much like stepping into a fire ant colony. :)

[volosong]

56. Every Letter to the Editor, Every E-Mail Matters

Dem_Strategist in my opinion is totally correct.

Positive things happen all the time. Often one doesn't know who or what precisely was the inciting factor.It's like firing artillery shells in a fog. You may not see the result but you will get hits if you fire long enough.

I can't recommend this like strongly enough. It makes submitting letters a flash.



http://congress.org/congressorg/dbq/media/

[Name removed]

78. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[quaoar]

5. You have suggested that the media is the enemy

Which is true and not true at the same time.

But what makes this year so different from any other -- media wise -- is the emergence of blogs. Blogs are only getting started in influencing political debate in this country. Blogs are everyone's way of creating their own media. You no longer need $100 million and 100,000 gallons of ink to start a newspaper any more.

If someone has something worth saying, start a blog. Maybe you won't become as well known as Atrios or Kos, but you could become an influential force in your community, in your neighborhood. Every little bit matters.

[stellanoir]

6. thanks for all the clarifications D_S

and thanks also for your tolerance for the criticism.

Am compelled to say this. . .

The only way anyone will ever find a strategist, or for that matter, a politician with whom they are in 100% agreement, is to become one (a strategist or a politician) themselves.

[Kahuna]

7. No offense.. But the things you are suggesting that we do as far as

deconstructing the media appearances of Dem strategists, etc. leaves me very disheartened. I would think that you all would be doing that as part of your jobs. What do you all do exactly? What does a strategist do if they don't watch the media and compare and contrast your owns guys as well as the other side? I thought your jobs were to watch everything. I'm really depressed now.

I think what you can get from us is how real people outside the beltway perceive the issues, ads and media appearances. That's where I think so called strategists and pundits miss the boat.
They are so locked into D.C. group think, they are out of touch with Joe and Sue Sixpack. You can use DU as a focus group. Here you will find a broad range of how voters on a wide range of the electorate view things.

[Dem_Strategist]

9. Who said the campaign doesn't do it?

What I'm saying is that those who spend time criticizing the campaign's supposed failings should do something concrete about it.

[Kahuna]

10. So sorry. You left that part out.

nt

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

77. Naw, you just missed it.

[jimshoes]

8. Glad you're looking here for some helpful hints/tips

This board is full of people with great ideas and humorous asides enough to fill volumes if anyone had the desire. From reading the above post, I would only suggest that as someone on the inside with access to the decision makers, perhaps you might care to have more than just yourself perusing these boards to glean some of the more pertinent and timely advice given here. A lot of the time the folks here are way ahead of the curve so to speak.

[bushwakker]

11. thank you for recognizing that some of the surrogates

have been less than prepared and effective in countering then attacking the Bush campaign. the public faces of the campaign need to be better prepared than they have been. maybe some "old hands" are needed?

[Dem_Strategist]

17. Did I say that?

.

[John_H]

51. LOL!

Actually it's not funny. My God, they must be laughing their asses off at the RNC.

[John_H]

52. sorry--dupe

[Catt03]

12. I have a question

I saw Brian Keefer on The Daily Show last week and he was talking about the book he co authored "All The Presidents Spin: George W. Bush, the Media and the Truth."

All though I have not read the book, the reviews sound like the book is right on target.

Here is an excerpt:

Bush's record raises a number of questions. Just how often did the President deceive us? How did he do it? And why didn't anyone put a stop to it?

The answers are disturbing. George W. Bush has done serious damage to our political system. His deceptions span nearly all of his major policies, were achieved using some of the most advanced tactics from public relations, and were designed to exploit the failings of the modern media. In the process, Bush has made it even more difficult for citizens to understand and take part in democratic debate.

These deceptions are worthy of close attention for more than the insight they give us into the President himself. He is simply the highest profile carrier of a virus infecting our political system. Its symptoms are misleading public statements, a disregard for the value of honest discussion, and treating policy debates as little more than marketing challenges—a devastating combination for democracy.

Bush's Troubled Relationship with the Truth

-----------------------------------------------

This marketing is an art and was made for George Bush, a man who is not interested in any connection other that saying the sound bites he is given. It is also dishonest, misleading and devastating to democracy. I don't even think the press can keep up.

With all that said, how do we ever counteract this with written words. We need a dramatic and loud way to do this.

Who, when, what, why and how.....LOUDLY

[Kahuna]

13. If our guys would spend some time at Buzzflash.com and DU..

bushwatch.com(with a subsection: bushlies.com) and drudge they would be amply prepared to counter the repuke lies and talking points. There are an abundance of online resources where you can get the information to counter the lies. How is it that we know on a daily basis what the developing repuke talking points will be? Yet when we watch our guys on TV, they seem to be clueless half the time. Sometimes they are aware but they try to brush them off because they're so ludicrous. Their talking points and memes may be ludicrous but they work on the ignorant masses who don't want to think for themselves.

[ulysses]

14. completely subjective starter list of who you should listen to here

IrateCitizen
salin
Armstead
nothingshocksmeanymore
LydiaLeftcoast
noiretblu

There are many others, and some of the folks in this list only post sporadically these days it seems. As to why them - they are party and issue activists, well-informed and highly intelligent. They have sharp ideas.

[Kahuna]

15. Whew! What a list...

I think you should disclose that at least some of these people are Greens who supported Nader in 2000.

[ulysses]

16. I did say it was subjective.

:)

Heh - I supported Nader in 96 and 2000, so feel free to not listen to me either. :D

[Kahuna]

19. Glad you didn't take offense. I hope they don't.

:scared:

[Armstead]

73. I didn't vote for nader and am not a Greenie

But I did defend Nader in 200O, and I believe the IDEAS of Nader and the Greens are on target.

I just want to see Democratic politicians being DEMOCRATIC politicians, not corporate whores or watered down Republicans.

[ulysses]

20. actually, I'm not sure it would be accurate

to say that any of them are Greens, but yes, if it makes you feel better, some of the people on this list supported Nader in 2000. Bad DUers, BAD!

[Kahuna]

21. Then to clarify.. They supported the Green party.

nt

[ulysses]

23. that might make for an interesting question for Dem_Strat.

D_S - would the fact that a person supported Nader or any other third-party candidate in the past discount their suggestions in your eyes?

[Kahuna]

26. It probably shouldn't matter except for in order to weigh which side

of the "progressive" spectrum the views are coming from. The majority of Democratic voters are moderates. It wouldn't be useful to have the input of leftists only.

[ulysses]

28. come now, though -

we've been told for years that DU is so far left of the mainstream as to not even be worth mentioning, so isn't *any* input D_S gets from here going to be, by definition, leftist? :)

Others are welcome to make their own lists, of course. nsma never supported Nader but she's as progressive as anyone here, so it behooves us to be careful with the labels.

[Kahuna]

36. Yes. But there are degrees to being on the left.

You know it. And I know it. So stop playing games. :D

[ulysses]

45. of course I know it.

It's a distinction that's often lost here, though.

[Dem_Strategist]

27. Good ideas are good ideas

.

[ulysses]

29. thanks for the reply. n/t

[Radical Activist]

18. but...but...but...

That would require energy and coordinated effort with other people to actually do something. It's so much easier to sit at my computer and piss and moan to people in positions of responsibility! :shrug:

Those are good suggestions but since I'm in a swing state (arkansas) I'm going to keep doing stuff on the ground, which I like better anyway. I've personally registered over 700 people to vote this year and I'm not done. I just hope everyone on DU is doing SOMETHING in this election. Whether it's volunteering on a local campaign or taking Dem_Strategists suggestion or some other action.

Hats off to everyone volunteering or working on a campaign this year!
:yourock:

[Dem_Strategist]

22. "Hats off to everyone volunteering or working on a campaign this year!"

Well said.

[NMDemDist2]

24. ok people I've started a thread for D_S here

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=108&topic_id=115361#115370

[Kahuna]

25. When CNN's Kelly Arena reported that Usama bin Laden wanted Kerry..

to win, where were the Dem strategists? Where was the outrage? Why didn't our side issue a statement of disgust? Kerry should have directly addressed that disgusting report. The only way CNN will stop taking liberties to report this kind of bile is when our leaders let them know in no incertain terms that we will call them on it. We all did our part. We did contact CNN about it. We let them know in no uncertain terms how disgusting and partisan it was for them to suggest such a thing with absolutely no evidence to back them up. We felt let down by you all. You all were no where to be found.

[Kahuna]

37. Crickets. I anticipated no reply.

nt

[AmerDem]

30. Dem_Strategist, your posts here are truly appreciated

Don't expect full replies from the "FEW" armchair strategist here. Your calling them out with detailed information will most surely shut most of their empty words down.

My take is, you are always going to have people who on a personal level feel they aren't too significant to the world they live in. They instead get an uplift to their self esteem by challenging others of accomplishment, as if they are now somehow of equal caliber based on association.

Anyway, most here really appreciate the direction you are trying to lend in mobilizing the masses for the good of the country. Keep up the good work and look forward to your future posts!:toast:

[Kahuna]

31. So you think you know the motives of us who challenge ...

Dem Strategist? Don't quit your day job.

Speaking for myself it has nothing to do with my personal self esteem. It has to do with observing the inaffective way that our side responds to the republican attacks. The proof is in the pudding. A blind person could see it.

There have been countless Du threads on it. With Dem Strategist on board I view it as an opportunity to ask some questions that have been put out here on DU for a long time. Finally, someone shows up who should be able to answer them.

And yes. A lot of us could actually do a better job than some of the professionals. As an example. Our congressional leaders received MILLIONS of emails and letters leading up to the IWR expressing our views about how we believed to vote in favor of it would be an error of major proportions. They didn't listen to us. We were right. They were wrong. So, while my opinion doesn't count for much with you because you think I have a self esteem problem, my opinion is worth just as much as theirs with me.

You and I also view "accomplishments" differently. I view a person as acommplished when they excel at what they do. While you may believe that just because someone has obtained a position that makes them automatically accomplished. Under your scenario, Bush would be considered "accomplished" because he has a position. He would be considered a failure in my book because he performs his job poorly.

[KoKo]

44. I agree, Kahuna....well said. (n/t)

[Kahuna]

47. thanks,, Love..

:hug:

[AmerDem]

50. read my words!

I said "MOST", here, read again,.....

"Don't expect full replies from the "FEW" armchair strategist here. Your calling them out with detailed information will most surely shut most( see the word most Kahuna? ) of their empty words down".

Now let's see you put as much energy into getting Kerry elected as you do in trying to outwit someone with a more direct tie to the campaign!

[Kahuna]

62. Just don't try to attribute motives to people you don't know..

And you're still doing it. I'm not trying to outwit anybody. I want answers! This should not be a one way dialog. You wanna be a little rah rah cheerleader. Go ahead. Nobody's stopping you. But I'm not about to fall over myself for a stranger who comes here to issue directives instead of trying to get a pulse on what Mr. and Mrs. Average Joe are thinking. And that includes what Kahuna is thinking too. Because as far as I'm concerned, the problem with politicians and strategists is that they are locked into D.C. group-think. They have an echo chamber and what average citizens are thinking doesn't register with them. So, you follow blindly if you want to. If DS can't answer some questions, then I see no reason to take him/her seriously.

[AmerDem]

76. can anyone say "Prozac"

only someone looking for problems would make a comment like "I'm not about to fall over myself for a stranger who comes here to issue directives" . No one has done that! Someone came here with incite into the campaign you or just about anyone else here have no knowledge what so ever about. They stated what they felt was needed. That is all that took place.

You really have a paranoid way of thinking and there no getting around it! Perhaps you should seek some help for it!

[Name removed]

32. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[janx]

33. Dem_Armchair_Psychologist?

:smoke:

[Kahuna]

34. A cheerleader, maybe?

:shrug:

[Mick Knox]

38. Something smells funny in Denmark

and its not the cafe'.

[Name removed]

54. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Name removed]

55. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[AmerDem]

57. who ...

the fuck are you?

[Raya]

35. Thanks. Very constructive suggestions.

There are some very insightfull persons on this board, but it is
truly difficult to coordinate.

Hope some of the leading posters take the initiative to form some
advisory teams to synthesize input.

[union_maid]

39. It would be great to have a sticky thread

or something where alert DUers could post issues of the day. Some people are better at finding things that need atttention than others. It would be good to have on place to check in when you get online and have a look at what needs attention that day. It would also be good if discussion about whatever the issue, show, article, etc. was could be conducted on a different thread - with links to discussion if people wanted. It would streamline our "rapid response" team considerably if something like that could be implemented.

[janx]

40. This has been requested in ATA twice during the last couple

of days. It's really up to the admins. They are considering ideas. We'll see what they can come up with.

[union_maid]

41. OK, thanks

I'll keep my eye out.

[creeksneakers2]

42. I know the press doesn't cooperate

But, the fundamentals of the race have to change. Bush, Cheney, and But,the media are turning the race into a chest beating contest. Bush is the war candidate. Bush is the champion of over simplification. Kerry is never going to beat Bush by competing with him on who will be the one who is willing to take us to war.

Shouldn't the issue be: What are we going to do about terrorism in the next four years? Kerry needs to re-frame the issue. Kerry had a great chance to redefine the issue when Cheney ran his "sensitive" attacks.

The GOP succeeds by repeating the same few points over and over. Kerry could get better control on the issues by doing the same thing, and having all of us write in. We need to repeatedly redefine the issue.

Let Bush defend war as the solution to terrorism. Let Bush explain how spending $200 billion and 900 lives in one country will work when terrorists are in 60 countries. Let Bush explain why, when we've caught 2000 terrorists in 95 countries but only five in Iraq, that his "You're either with us or against us" strategy has worked.

I have lots of suggestions and I know you get many from people who are equally convinced that they have the solutions. Thank you for reading them. I'll write to the media, call local talk shows, register voters, and do everything I can. I don't see how any of it is going to do any good though when we are fighting the wrong battle.

[Kahuna]

46. Good post with great points..

:yourock:

[mzmolly]

43. Dear Dem Strategist. I just want to say thanks for your presence here.

You obviously realize there is potential within this board to make a difference in the coming election.

I am glad you reached out to us but ask that you keep in mind, not everyone here is REALLY on our side. Also, many of us who want Kerry and Edwards to win are really desperate.

People here can be nasty, but I hope that you will continue working with those of us who want to 'take back our country' with Kerry/Edwards.

I look forward to helping out in any way *I* can. :hi:

[ulysses]

48. toward this end, in part...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x623213

[kentuck]

49. Thanks D_S !

I'm sure many DUers appreciate hearing that all their hard work has been appreciated. But this is a tough bunch, as you have probably noticed? :)

[rocktivity]

53. Advisory board, my donkey!

DS, you should be listening to EVERYONE'S advice, and filtering it through your own experience and common sense, even if it means--gasp--that you got something wrong. After all, it's OUR votes you need!

:headbang:
rocknation

[maxanne]

58. my suggestion

would be to listen to those who are unhappiest with the Kerry campaign. If you listen to all the heinie kissers, you aren't going to learn a damned thing. Kerry is pandering hard to the right. You might want to try listening to the left.

Of course anyone with strategists like the Shaheens will do no such thing.

[TheDonkey]

59. Excellent ideas. DU really could be used as a powerful voice rather

than a "doom and gloom" fest that it turns into rather frequently recently.

I'm sure the admins are working hard on how to do that with things like Campaign Underground.

[stellanoir]

61. Aaaand another thing. . .

Television ads for prescription drugs on TV should be BANNED to their lower costs.

When I turn on the tube and am barraged with all these ads (8 on three different networks during the evening "snooze"-I counted). . .I think. . .this has got to cost a small fortune. . .I wonder. . .when did this start and what's the bloody point?

I don't remember any pharmaceutical commercials on TV prior to about 1995 (guessing). Prior to that, if someone had a physical problem, they'd go to a doctor and the doctor would give them a prescription if one is warranted. What is the need now for advertizing unless it's merely pandering to hypocondriacs and sex maniacs. . .?

And I really don't particularly relish having to explain to really young kids what Viagra and Cialus (sp?) is for. The pharmaceutical companies should be prohibited from airing these commercials just as cigarette ads were banned in the sixties. They were not in the public's best interest either.

Health care is such a mess. This is but one simple and small solution for a really complicated multi-layered problem.

/end rant (bullet line would be the first : )

[buycitgo]

63. IDEA for STEM CELL COMMERCIAL.....with PUGS in it

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=132&topic_id=623999#624065

[troublemaker]

64. Dear Dem_Strategist,

I am being sharply critical here because this election is life and death and you are not maximizing your utility. I want you to do something that I cannot do. For whatever reason, you have gained the imprimatur of DU and that gives you a certain profile or platform.

Your well-intentioned best is doubtless doing *some* good, but you are also lowering the morale of some DUers, engendering distrust of the national party apparatus and/or Kerry campaign and squandering a one-shot novelty driven opportunity to organize something within the DU framework.

DU is a library of benign, obvious and often well-phrased advice, so saying “get organized” or “write the media” is cheerleading we don't need. “Be creative” is even worse. (It’s like Homer Simpson fulfilling his role of safety inspector by saying “safen up!”)

Pick something that you can organize yourself and organize it. Or provide timely media contact information that you have vetted for maximum usefulness. In general, do something! Bland repetitive advice is harmless from nobodies, but you have taken the trouble to say you are somebody and you’ve gotten some people here to pin their hopes to you. When you offer hollow obvious advice it implies that the Kerry campaign is vaccuous, and it's scary.

You wrote: Back to the media: many have asked if their efforts have made a difference. The answer is an unequivocal YES. Every letter, every email matters. You never know which one gets through, and who it gets through to, but holding the media accountable is priority number one.

C'mon man! (We know you are male from the admin forum) You are talking to adults. Platitudes aside, letters and emails that do not get through do not matter. So why not take the time to conduct a little seminar on how to get through? You should be posting compendia of vetted contact information and information on effective mailing.

These are thoughts on the topic off the top of my head—quite possibly wrong. Please correct what is wrong in the following block of text, reinforce what is right, and add much, much more information:

Email is weak and easily dismissed, but cheap and easy to send. Phone calls are better, but they reach the wrong people. (Receptionists don’t write the news.) Snail mail is good because someone has to handle it. A federal express letter is expensive but has a very good chance of being read by the addressee. Think of news directors and writers, not just the TV faces who are really just newsreaders. The people that program the news don’t get nearly as much fan mail or hate mail, and may actually read some of it. Short letters are 100 times more likely to be read. When people look at mail they are looking for a reason to ignore it. So do not provide a reason! Keep it very short and factual and pleasant and respectful. Stick to the facts, the more specific the better. Keep your purpose in mind… you are writing to effect a change, not to tell someone off or provide emotional release for yourself. Pick one clear-cut journalistic error to complain about. Do not imply the recipient is a Bush operative or a moron.

_______________________
Some stray observations:

* You wrote: Last but not least, please don't assume the campaign hasn't done something just because the media filter blocks it. Respectfuly, if the media filter blocks it then it has not been done. This is essentially, “the dog ate my message.” Excuses are bad for morale.

* The word you are looking for in your posts is “we.” One more use of “you” to describe people on DU may be the last straw. In person the "you" thing is a rallying cry, as in "You can make a difference." On the internet "you" is the word that follows "fuck." What works face-to-face doesn’t work on the internet. (Hint: the Dean blog was atypical. DU is an honest-to-god marketplace of ideas where appeals to authority are nothing more than a punchline.) If you are not consciously talking down to people then you need to work on your presentation or else hand this project off to someone with a less self-important and contemptuous natural style. What’s works in a union hall, urban church or while wrangling canvassers does not work on an open internet forum. Your tone should suit the medium. (The easiest way to craft a less contemptuous style is to look through my old posts and do the opposite, because I am a real prick online.)

[buycitgo]

65. EXCELLENT! why are YOU not a dem strategist?

if you get to be one, can I have a job?

[kentuck]

66. Troublemaker, don't you think that is a little harsh on the newcomer??

:) He better have a thick skin......

[troublemaker]

67. If he's a strategist (as opposed to campaign worker) he's a professional

And as an online activist he has to know the internet is a mean place full of ill-tempered cranks like me.

But I would give everything I have to get Bush out of office. So even I'm worth reaching, right?

If I knew the guy I'd probably love him. Hey, Dem_Strategist, I love you! (Really, I love anyone working against Bush) But all we know on the internet is a few words, and my two cents is that the words we've seen are not getting it.

Dem_Strategist -- ask around the campaign (or DNC) and see who your fellows would most like to see get inundated with succinct, respectful outrage over a 48 hour period and pick the period and help us with the project. From one concrete action more may develop.

Any of us can say "Let's put on a show" but you have a profile for the moment, so you can catalyze actual action.

[troublemaker]

68. MEDIA MAILING SUGGESTION

When writing media outlets our usual inclination is to say, "You Suck." Because they really do suck. Unfortunately, few people are motivated by that. Partisan rants are also easily dismissed.

But we happen to have something to say right now that is a valid journalistic complaint and not overtly partisan. We want to see more coverage of IRAQ. Americans continue to die in Iraq and it is no longer covered. Now Allawi has ordered reporters out of Najaf (seemingly as prelude to a massacre) and we probably won't hear a thing about it!

So let's all send very nice, respectful, short notes to media outlets asking for more Iraq news. For Bush, no Iraq news is good news, so this is a perennial goal to agitate for right up to the election. Here's mine. (Everyone has to write their own; form letters don't carry much weight)

Dear XXX,

I watch/read XXX all the time, and lately I feel like we don't get any news from Iraq anymore. It's always the Scott Peterson trial or Kobe Bryant or some other nonsense.

Unfortunately I have to watch CNN International or read The Economist to get almost any word on the situation there at all.

That's a sad comment. Why should I have to read foreign magazines or watch a TV channel aimed at foreigners to find out what's happening with our own American soldiers in Iraq? I know it's dangerous duty for journalists, but I hope you will get more video and reactions because it's important for our future.

Thanks for listening,
John Q. Public

[CBHagman]

71. Amen to that, troublemaker.

Adopting an insulting tone and harsh language won't get us anywhere. When you sit down to type that e-mail or letter, have a set of notes from which to work and build your argument systematically. The most devastating things can be said using the most staid of approaches -- the letter, the formal speech, etc.

[troublemaker]

75. Apology

Sometimes I'm too blunt and hostile. I genuinely appreciate Dem_Strategist's effort. I appreciate everyone's effort.

Dem_Strategist is the first non-mod entity (that I've seen) to be blessed by admin. That's novel and has attracted a lot of attention. That attention level will not be there the second time. So something concrete needed to fall fast upon the heels of the first posts. Hence my exasperation, sensing a missed opportunity that would end up increasing disaffection rather than correcting it.

If Dem_Strat was not aware of that dynamic then my "suggestions" should have been more moderate.

[Cheswick2.0]

72. Terrific Troublemaker

I 'd also like to commend you on your idea about requesting more Iraq coverage.

You should make that post it's own thread and include media contact information. That way people can take just a very few minutes and send out an e-mail. I will PM you the list of media contacts that I have if I can find it.

[wicket]

69. kick

:kick:

[CBHagman]

70. It's true that the media often doesn't cover Democratic efforts.

I work for a newswire and see schedules of events every day -- press conferences, addresses, etc. -- that never make it to anything but C-SPAN, if they're lucky. The New Republic has also covered this little matter of the press simply not turning up to cover Democratic events.

And when I hear people screaming that the Democrats aren't doing/saying anything, it drives me crazy. CNN is too busy covering hideous murder cases and the continuing nutjobness of Michael Jackson to tell us any differently.

Perhaps the DNC needs a supermarket tabloid of its own to get the message out. "Bush twins go wild!" or "Paul Wolfowitz's gross grooming habits" would make a nice change from sex-change Saddam and Hillary's alien baby. How about it, folks?

[LunaC]

74. This may not be the time or place to ask, but....

Why in the hell isn't the PNAC/White House connection being exposed?

A stealth coup occured in this country and the citizens ought to know before they cast their votes.

Iraq - one of the biggest deceptions and obvious blunders of this Administration - was on the drawing board since 1998. Shouldn't this be an ISSUE?

(Please refer to "The Whispering Campaign" link below for details on the neocon takeover of the White House if you don't already know.)

[wiggs]

79. Oil fields in rogue states

Yes. And New Yorker Magazine found evidence that PNAC thinking was alive and well in the WH. Cheney apparently advocated intervention in Iraq well before 9/11. A recently unearthed memo (from early 2001) reflects direction from Cheney for the National Security Commission to coordinate with his new Energy Task Force (the one that was secret and that he refuses to discuss) in the effort to MELD TWO PREVIOUSLY DIFFERENT POLICY AREAS: 1) DEALING WITH ROGUE STATES AND 2) CAPTURE OF NEW AND EXISTING OIL AND GAS FIELDS.

This is Iraq.

TPM also mentioned this a few months ago.

Sounds real important to me. Who has the memo now? Who should be getting this message out?

Why do things like this (and the 700 mil unauthorized transfer, and Sibel, and lying to Congress re medicare, Ashcroft contempt of congress, energy task force, etc) just disappear from the discussion? Who should be keeping them alive, not just on DU, but in public view?

[adolf batwing]

80. WHAT CAN I DO IN A RED STATE?

[Sparkly]

81. Here's one thing

Here's a way to work with other volunteers in your area through the Kerry campaign site:
http://volunteer.johnkerry.com/

[grasswire]

82. if Dem Strategist...

...is the sole campaign person trying to harness the netizens, then nothing was learned from the trailblazing of the Dean campaign.

One person trying to harness and activate the tens of thousands of web dems? Oy.

Dem leadership just doesn't get it. They ought to be paying some DU regulars to be taking the campaign to the Internet. There are thousands of local and special interest message boards where talking points and reference material could be posted, and where Bush can be discredited and Kerry elevated.

The RNC is paying Internet operatives. It wouldn't take much to develop a squad of trusted and informed warriors for this task. Put to work some of the DU-ers who have been put out of work by George's economy. Just twenty people at ten bucks an hour could literally influence hundreds of thousands of people. Hundreds of thousands.

[GumboYaYa]

83. The guy on Hardball opposite Dowd last night did a great job.

He repeated over and over that the Bushiewes were distorting the truth and that shows that they have no positive agenda to promote.

That needs to be repeated over and over again. It is the anecdote for the attacks taht we know will continue.


It should be worked into as many lttes and media contacts as possible so that it starts to stick.

[gulliver]

84. Use the board better. Will Pitt says you really are a Dem...

...Strategist, so I buy that. Are you the only paid Dem strategist on this board? Who knows?

This board is like the lower layers of a think tank. It's an on-line brainstorming session. You don't "take the advice" of a brainstorming session. You use its output as a resource.

Here at DU you have thousands of intelligent people combing the web, their local news coverage, and their social networks for weaknesses and strengths in both the Bush and Kerry campaigns. DU itself is extremely organized compared to the pre-Internet campaign information organization that existed only a few years ago.

Just use it. If you think it is doing something harmful to the campaign, then say so. If you think some of the information is redundant or wrong, well, duh. It's unrefined.

FWIW (nothing), I think the Kerry strategists have done a fair job. Considering you don't have revolving-door access to good-paying corporate jobs in the off-season (as Republican strategists do), you seem to be a fairly good group.

But if you let me down, I'm going to say so. If I think you've missed something or mis-framed it, I'm going to say so. If you do a good job, I'm going to take it for granted. If you want kudos, call your mom.