Author: Sebastian

Bitter and I just got back from counterattacking the Patrick Murphy Campaign.  We placed Tom Manion signs at an untouched main roadway where there was a good bit of public property.  We also counterattacked two Murphy positions at key exits.  We ran out of ammunition (signs) and were unable to continue the fight.  We will resupply, and attack the remaining positions sometime this week.  We cannot allow a sign gap!  Take that, you gun banning asshole!

People might argue that signage doesn’t matter, but it does.  A lot of people really aren’t very aware of congressional races, and you don’t want them to just see Murphy signs around.  You want your candidate’s name to stick in their heads, so when they start looking for election information, they remember.  This is epsecially important if you’re not an incumbent.

Signs are also a form of psychological warfare.  When the Murphy people drive by their signs tomorrow morning, they will know Manion people are in the area, ready to ambush their turf and match them sign for sign.  It’s incredibly demoralizing.  Manion supporters will also know that they have neighbors who support their candidate, and they aren’t freaks after all.  It’s always good to let your people know they aren’t freaks.

But most importantly, it’s a moral booster for you, the activist.  There’s fun in the attack, knowing it will anger Murphy’s Minions. As you thrust each sign into (hopefully) soft earth, you can take great satisfaction in thinking “Ha!  Here’s a nice little f*&k you from the NRA, Pat!  Stick that in your assault weapons ban and smoke it!”  If you don’t really like people, putting out signs is a great way to contribute.

Someone please tell me this isn’t real.  The more I talk to other people about Obama, the more I feel like I sound like a right wing whakjob.  Because this shit is the kind of thing that paranoid right-wing fantasies are made out of.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zt6JWzBqLWs[/youtube]

Only I worry this time it’s not a fantasy.  Looking at the writing on the walls that’s visible for clues, it would appear this is the 18th and Vine District in Kansas City, MO.  The tag on the video says an Urban Community Leadership Academy, and that the teacher has been suspended.

I point this out not because I think Obama’s campaign is going around training the brownshirts, but because I do not wish to elect anyone who inspires this kind of regimented and blind loyalty.  That is dangerous to our Republic.  Think what you want about McCain, but he’s a typical politician.  He’s an evil I know.  I don’t know who Barack Obama really is, but I do know the depths of hell to which this kind of loyalty leads.

UPDATE: Sadly, it’s real.  It was done before Obama was the nominee, and the school seems to be taking appropriate action.

Simon of Classical Values talks about poll numbers, and why we should be skeptical, links to this post over at Stolen thunder, which says something that’s very true:

This is not a football game or a baseball game, it’s politics. Support is built up gradually and won bits at a time. Also, some of the best gains are not obvious at first, because some significant actions take time to develop. McCain and Obama both fell back a bit the last week of September, McCain because Republican support fell off a bit, Obama lost independents’ support. This is a salient factor in where the candidates’ opportunities and weaknesses lay.

And we can exploit these weaknesses.  They key to this election will be swinging independent voters away from Obama.  That will certainly be the key to winning Pennsylvania.  Simon says:

So do the right thing and give him a click. Plus his advice is critical: keep the faith. Do not give up. Make sure you and all your friends show up on election day.

And Simon said, so if you don’t do it, you’ll lose!

Jim Geraghty makes some good points about McCain’s campaign.  Though, I’d prefer to wait until the patient actually dies before starting the autopsy.