Friday, November 05, 2004

Jeff Thigpen: "Yes I'll be bloggin' in office!" Previously: Jeff's campaign manager on the benefits of a campaign blog in a local race. 6:37:48 PM    comment []

I'm tired of being told I'm immoral and unpatriotic. Liberals love their children and their country, too. From an op-ed piece by Frank Pastore in the LA Times (reg. required): "The left bewitches with its potions and elixirs, served daily in its strongholds of academe, Hollywood and old media. It vomits upon the morals, values and traditions we hold sacred: God, family and country." More: "We do not want to become secular." You don't have to. That's the beauty of this country. But our Constitution, our laws, are ruthlessly secular. The coming fight between business and laissez-faire Republicans and folks like this is going to be interesting to watch. You can ride the tiger for only so long before it gets hungry again. 4:53:14 PM    comment []

My ZD article on the use of blogs and other web tools in recent US Senate campaigns is up here. "The potential for raising money and organizing supporters has been revealed, but the ultimate payoff, victory, remains elusive." Thanks to Matt Gross for all his help. His work on the Erskine Bowles campaign was good, but by my analysis his bosses should have done more, sooner. Some takeaways: Start early. Integrate the web into your overall campaign. Understand that the web is great at raising money, but it can do a lot more if you let it. Fun article to report -- quotes from Nicco Mele, Kos, Henry Copeland, and others. From the article: "Bowles needed every advantage he could find. One thing he had going for him was a superior online campaign, which brought in more than $300,000 in donations over the Web. And perhaps more important, the low-cost Web campaign succeeded in sharing information with potential voters, and motivating volunteers, by using tools such as a Weblog, e-mail and online video. Though it's hard to say if anything could have stemmed the Republican tide that Burr rode into office, the Bowles campaign clearly could have done more to exploit its online advantage." Read the whole thing. 4:28:01 PM    comment []

Took a morning walk with Dave Winer, I explained why Bush's victory doesn't shock or depress me the way it does some folks, then we had a big breakfast at Denny's. Good conversation. Headed to work, hope to post my ZD case study on the use of the web in Senate campaigns later today... 1:53:46 PM    comment []

Krugman: No Surrender. "The religious right - not to be confused with religious Americans in general - isn't a majority, or even a dominant minority. It's just one bloc of voters, whom the Republican Party has learned to mobilize with wedge issues like this year's polarizing debate over gay marriage." 10:51:48 AM    comment []

Jacksonville, NC -- Computer loses 4,500 votes. Ooops. 10:22:02 AM    comment []

Long day yesterday. Weather kept flights from landing on schedule at O'Hare, so we sat on the ground for a while at GSO. Yet United was able to fly out of Chicago on schedule. Another GSO passenger and I ran through the airport like OJ Simpson in an old commercial and got to the gate in time to watch our plane leave without us, our noses pressed against the window as the automaton at the desk repeated that she could not open the jetway door after it had been closed. Fortunately there were seats on the next flight, and alchohol for sale in the airport during the layover, and we got here eventually. Missed dinner with Dave, though. Man's search for broadband, part the latest: they ask you at check-in (Hyatt Rickey's, Palo Alto) if you want internet access. Duh, you say. $10/day for quite decent wireless service. Today: doing the day job in San Jose, interviews at big famous bubble-surviving tech company. Then, let the BloggerCon revels commence. 10:14:12 AM    comment []

Best wishes to Elizabeth Edwards for a quick and conclusive fight with cancer, and to her family as they support her in the fight. She made North Carolinians proud in the campaign, and now she's going to open a can of whup-ass on the disease. 9:58:49 AM    comment []