11 thoughts on “Stupid Party Indeed”

  1. I’ve heard it described this way:
    When the GOP is in charge, it’s like being run by old men. They just don’t get it.

    When the Dems are in charge, it’s like the kids have taken over the school.

    Neither is good, really.

  2. Your comment is a significant mischaracterization of what the article actually said, which was that the McCain campaign wasn’t adroit in using Facebook (the article implies they did have a Facebook presence…).

    That’s a very different thing and is not directly applicable to the party at large.

  3. Reading the article again, I don’t think there was any significant misrepresentation. The article says both the GOP and McCain campaign weren’t interested in innovating using Facebook.

  4. I’m dubious as to what *good* it would have done them.

    Would it have gotten anyone who wasn’t already going to, to vote for a Republican candidate? If so, how would it do so?

    Would anyone who wasn’t already gung-ho have become a fan or friended The Party?

    To me this looks like a classic class of Gnomeism:

    1) Facebook
    2) ???
    3) Get votes.

    The middle step there eludes me.

    1. I think it’s the third step that’s slightly off, Sigivald. I think one thing it could be used for is a get out the vote tool for younger voters. In fact, for some, it may be easier to reach them on Facebook than on the phone or in person (traditional GOTV methods). The step two strategy is still one that’s far from perfected, but I think if you refine the goal, it could be a more useful tool.

  5. Given how close the election was, any little bit could have helped.

    The campaign showed flashes of brilliance every so often – which they firmly put a basket on and sat on whenever they saw those flashes.

  6. It might have changed my vote. I’m not sure though. I know the fact that they didn’t did tally in the column of why not to vote for them.

    Although it’s also likely that if they had run McCain rather than the GOP Presidential Candidate that would have swayed my vote as well. I think Sarah Palin also suffered at the hands of the GOP Machine.

    But then again, I’m not the target demographic. Female, pro-choice, union member, gun owner.

  7. I think the GOP planning team thought they could get away with showing different candidates to different audiences (as the Democrats often do). That takes a media unwilling ot show the “wrong” people the “wrong” candidate, though.

    Agreed that they didn’t let Sarah Palin be Sarah Palin, rather than GOP VP candidate, and McCain only rarely got away with being John McCain. (And when he did it wasn’t a Good Thing – witness the stupid-in-retrospect campaign suspension).

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