Oh my.. The Fun Run is EVIL,but deliciously so

[SoCalDem]

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=funrun


DIRTY TRICK Two candidates switch places
ENDORSEMENT Moves a candidate to the middle of the pack
FRONT RUNNER Moves a candidate to the front of the pack
GAFFE Whenever one candidate moves forward, another moves back
JOEMENTUM Moves two candidates into a tie with third-place candidate
MONKEYSHINE Freezes a candidate
OUT OF GAS Moves a candidate to the back of the pack
POLL AXER All candidates have their steps cut in half
PUNDIT MAGNET It costs two steps to move one step forward
SABOTAGE Two candidates switch places
TWEET-DOWN Speeds up a candidate
FUN RUN TICKER

[Basileus Basileon]

1. They're going to have to add more space on the left for Sen. Clinton, I'd bet. nt

[flvegan]

3. She's already in the negative.

Hillbots...swarm!!

[tridim]

10. It felt really good to give her a -10.

:evilgrin:

and DK a +5. :)

Edit: I am slightly ticked that Gore isn't an option.

[Blashyrkh]

25. Why include someone who is not a candidate? Can I get in there too?

[yurbud]

30. I liked Hillary as first lady when she was supposed to be lefter than Bill. Now she's righter than

Rudy.

[babylonsister]

2. It's a FANTASTIC idea! Might blow off some steam around here-

or not! :evilgrin: Very creative!

[ClassWarrior]

4. It's brilliant!

:toast: to Skinner, EarlG, and Elad!

NGU.

[blondeatlast]

5. I'm undecided and I think I'll wait it out til close to the end just to

have even more fun! :evilgrin:

Great work, administrators!

[SoCalDem]

7. yep.. wait for the lightning round

but don't wait too long


..."but make sure you use them before Democratic Underground receives 1000 donations and the race ends! (This means that if you are one of the last donors, you likely will not get a chance to use your steps.)..."

[Catch22Dem]

6. Let me tell you WHY this is such a great idea

Because, we get to see where the REAL supporters (and not those paid to spam our boards) stand. Before I even clicked on it, I knew that Edwards would be doing well and Hillary would be doing poorly. Hillary is NOT a progressive candidate, and this is going to show her DU "supporters" for what they are.

Flame me, I don't give a fuck.

[PeaceNikki]

9. Really? No.... really?

You honestly think people are paid to SPAM DU?

Really? Paid... money?

[Catch22Dem]

19. Of course

It's a very common practice, not just limited to political message boards, but TV and movie boards, finance boards, all kinds. Are you just being sarcastic, or what?

[karlrschneider]

32. I thought you guys were just bullshitting...are you saying there actually ARE people

who tinker around on discussion boards for (tiny amounts of) money? Hey, I'm not saying it's impossible, it's just awfully hard to imagine...:eyes:

[SoCalDem]

33. People who are already on the staffs of candidates probably get

"assignments" to "monitor" and "contribute" to political websites where their candidate may be being "discussed"..

[karlrschneider]

35. The concept just seems unlikely to me. I mean, it isn't like it's a viable full-time occupation

and the compensation can't be enough to buy any real dedication, can it? Eeek...

[SoCalDem]

36. There are MANY MANY young volunteers who would be willing to do this sort of thing

and probably do it on their own time :)

[karlrschneider]

42. I'm absolutely not questioning that possibility, but do you actually -know- of any real instance

of it? I just find it hard to imagine...but then I've lived a sheltered life.

[SoCalDem]

46. nope..but Freerepublic's a prime example

watch their JimRob Beg-fests.. they go on for WEEKS and for the longest time, the donations linger in the $20k range and then Blam-O! all of a sudden they "reach" their goal of $72K (est) ... When most of their regulars post all the time there, and most threads are in the double digits (or less).. there's some 'splainin' to do, Ricky..

Their "A Day in the Life of the President" used to routinely have thousands of posts..and for a LONG time now, it's rarely above 200..

If their website has "meddlers", I don't doubt that other sites 9like ours) has "visitors" as well :)

[karlrschneider]

54. Oh gag me, I don't pay them any attention but I can easily imagine some

RW asshole (like the one I used to work for) jumping in at the last minute with a big donation. And scaring up a "legal" way to make it tax-deductible.

[Nevernose]

58. Actually, I do.

I'm not gonna name names, but my candidate's (or one of them, anyway) local campaign folks "encourage" people -- especially younger, presumably tech-savy volunteers -- to be as "active" as possible at the most popular/influential/vocal websites. They also have staffers who help coordinate the online efforts, even including proofreading the emailed LTTEs (and THAT I find a little bizarre).

Ten or fifteen years ago, or even when DU was started in early 2001, this would have been paranoia. But times aren't changing: they've already changed.

Something like a third of Americans go to the Internet for their information these days, and in a rigged game, you'd have to be a fool not to try and stack the deck.

(FTR: I've said many times that, at least at DU, I'm not gonna pick sides. If Hillary's the worst we can do, we're in pretty good shape as a party. I'm like a kid in a candy store).

[crispini]

11. Em... I think those paid to spam our boards....

if this is indeed the case ... could certainly cough up the bucks for a donation to DU in order to change the poll.

Just a thought. :)

[tridim]

12. More funding for DU then..

It's a win-win.

[SoCalDem]

13. and they could time it to the very end and bump others down

:shrug:

it's a game of strategy..boost mine? or knock the other one down :P

[tekisui]

37. A well thought out thought.

Paid spammers on DU would be doing their best, including putting up money, to paint their employer in a favorable light.

[crispini]

43. Which, if followed to its logical conclusion, makes me think that there are

NOT paid Hillary shills on DU. :D

[Catch22Dem]

55. Not necessarily

It's one thing to have the authority to make scripted arguments. It's a whole 'nother thing to pony up cash.

[SoCalDem]

56. It's american politics ,,money talks,.. and the one with the last word,

and the biggest wallet has the biggest say :hi:

[Lone_Star_Dem]

8. This was a brilliant idea!

This could potentially become the greatest fundraiser in DU history. :rofl:

[tridim]

14. Just a thought, wouldn't this be a good way to run a real primary?

Primary voters all get 5 points to distribute positively or negatively to any candidates they wish.

[blondeatlast]

15. Interesting. Maybe at the convention, too (or instead)? nt

[Catch22Dem]

20. That would be cool

It would certainly be fun.

[tekisui]

38. It called Instant Run-off Voting

Your first choice gets a 1, your second, 2, and so on. The choices are wighted. It is what should be adopted to provide for a viable third-party candidate.

Although you can explicitly give one a negative.

[babylonsister]

16. Rec'd! nt

[blondeatlast]

17. I predict that when it gets to about 700, it'll get REALLY interesting!

Hehehe. I'm loving this!

[Forkboy]

18. I think it's an awesome idea, if people can maintain a sense of humor about it.

I can see some people taking it waaay too seriously, but I think it's a great way to have some fun with it.

Hats off to the Admins! :thumbsup:

[MrSlayer]

21. Heh, Clinton reached 100 backward steps.

This is a pretty cool setup.

[DS1]

22. Tweet-Down

love it

[graywarrior]

23. Yeeeeehaaaaaa! ! !

This is gonna be fun!

[SoCalDem]

24. They could also have added a CNN "no likey poll option"

where they just erase it all and set everything back to zero..or change the order of the candidates without changing the "count"

:spank:

[SoCalDem]

26. Wanna hear something funny? I think I accidentally gave Gravel my 42

I saw the little <5><15><30> thingie and since I NEVER read the "Instructions".. I think I clicked randomly (Gravel?) to see what would happen :rofl:
:spank:

[Yael]

28. LOL!

:rofl:

[TwilightGardener]

27. Gave Obama all my steps. The rest of 'em can go pound salt.

[ClassWarrior]

31. Pound salt??! You cad!! You rapscallion!!

You serpent toungued ne'er-do-well!!!

:rofl:

NGU.

[TwilightGardener]

41. LOL! I'm sorry to have to use such strong and offensive language.

[ClassWarrior]

64. Thirty lashes with a wet noodle for you...

...you scoundrel!

:toast:

NGU.

[karlrschneider]

44. No offense, but I really would like to know how to pronounce "toungued"

:rofl:

[SoCalDem]

47. Why you..you ..you.. picker-of-nits

:spank:

[karlrschneider]

50. Oh, yes, you complain...yet you have never seen my collection of nits!

The Smithsonian? HA! It is a PIKER!
:D

[ClassWarrior]

62. Toungue this, Smart Guy...

:rofl:

NGU.

[SoCalDem]

63. Toungue'..that's frenchie lingo, ain't it

:)

[Duer 157099]

29. There's just one little logistical point I don't quite get

For $5 you get 10 steps, but for $15 you get... 20?

If I donate $5 three times, I'll get 30 steps.

I thought it usually goes that more $$ upfront equates to more buying power than increments.

For example, it'd make more sense if:

$5 = 10 steps
$15 = 35 steps
$25 = 60 steps

So what gives?

[SoCalDem]

34. They should'a consulted with Grovelbot before they set the schedule

[Skinner]

39. Whoops.

We admins have been so focused on getting this thing programmed that we totally missed that minor detail. :blush: I'm going to talk to the other admins and decide if we need to do something.

[Sparkly]

40. Wondered that, too...

And donating $5 five times multiplies the chances of getting one of those "powerups."

It's a GREAT idea though -- very fun!!

[Catchawave]

45. My concern is multiple donations per donor will reach 1000 donations

pretty quick. Or does "donations" mean 1,000 donors.

I donated 35 and got 30 steps + 9 bonus steps. I know the bonus are random, but that would have added up had I donated 7 times :D

[Bluebear]

53. There is a "poll axer" easter egg which will halve ALL the votes one time

So it looks like we'll have more to to enjoy this :)

[karlrschneider]

51. We're Democrats. We don't do arithmetic.

:D

[crispini]

48. OMG the "Tweet-Down"

POWERUP: TWEET-DOWN

During an appearance on Hardball you climb over the desk and punch Chris Matthews in the nuts.

:rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl:

[Bluebear]

49. Ah! Someone found the "dirty trick" and Obama/Kucinich traded places!

[SoCalDem]

61. Poor Hillary..still in the minus column n/t

[karlrschneider]

52. I will pledge $5000 and half of my Social Security for that one.

Is it still available? :eyes:
:P

[crispini]

57. I'm reallly enjoying this.

Waiting for the next trick to be found!

[Catchawave]

60. Hi crispi !

Where do you find the tricks (clues?) Will something flash so I can find it?

Dayum, I just donated again since I didn't read the instructions the first time around and blew that chunk all at one click :silly:

:hi: :loveya: :hi:

[Spazito]

59. Absolutely brilliant fund-raising idea!

:toast: to the Admins for this one!

[burythehatchet]

65. I think its going to raise a ton of cash and some of it ought to go to

the eventual nominee