Connect the Dots! La-la-la-la!

For those on the left, the answer to the Tea Parties that sprang up on April 15 was supposed to be dismissal; they were simply "astroturf" events orchestrated from Inside the Beltway. That charge only goes so far, though, and with the images of thousands of people at tax protests across the country, charges of astroturfing ring fairly hollow.

So the Obama Administration took matters into their own hands. A report warning of "rightwing extremism" was leaked from the Department of Homeland Security. The report itself was probably not a commentary on Republican activism - but you have to read the report to know that.

What the timing of the report guarantees is that the phrase "rightwing extremism" will be uttered in news broadcasts within minutes of any coverage of the tea parties - not necessarily in a related story, but both items will be covered. Sometimes drawing the dots on the paper - and allowing others to connect them - is the best strategy.

But isn't the Delorean the "Car of the Future"?

The Chevy Volt - which, despite its name, runs on less than 1.21 gigawatts - is the car being asked to "save" General Motors. This electric model will produce zero emissions for most Americans (those that drive less than 40 miles per day) and goes from zero to 60 in nine seconds. (No word on how soon it gets to 88 miles per hour.)

The full model isn't due until next year, and it's going through some growing pains. In the meantime, as Wired reports, the Obama administration is trying to kill it. The task force appointed by the President to oversee handouts to the auto industry doesn't think the zero-carbon electric car will be profitable anytime soon. According to this blue-ribbon panel - which, incidentally, gets paid whether or not GM goes belly-up - GM should focus on more immediately marketable vehicles, rather than vehicles which will be marketable long-term.

Somehow, the Obama Administration has succeeded in being more nearsighted than Detroit auto manufacturers.

If GM was flush with profit, it would be a good time to experiment with new technology. Unfortunately, they are currently being propped up with someone else's money. The Obama Administration wants a return on their investment, and they won't let things like the long-term viability of GM get in the way.

That's the downside of asking for money from a controlling interest that doesn't understand your business.

Happy April 15

If you are among the late filers, take some time off from your last-minute calculations to check out your tax dollars at work. (And you can buy it here if you have anything left.)

Your overconfidence is your weakness

I'm not sure why I bothered to read Paul Krugman's Sunday New York Times piece taking on the tax protest Tea Parties, but I'm glad I did.

Predictably - and without much imagination - Krugman uses the Tea Parties as a way to bash conservative/Republican values such as economic freedom and lower taxes. The tea parties, he charges, "have been the subject of considerable mockery - and rightly so." Krugman never really explains why it is right to ridicule these demonstrations, opting instead to bash the traditional bogeymen of Rush Limbaugh and Tom DeLay. But a venerated columnist signing his name to Democratic Party talking points and submitting it as his own work isn't particularly noteworthy.

Krugman shows his self-imposed limits when he makes the claim that the tea parties are "AstroTurf (fake grass roots)." The demonstrations, he claims, are "manufactured" by groups like FreedomWorks and Fox News.

The great thing about being an opinion columnist for the Times is exactly the same as the great thing about being a blogger: apparently, you can just fire off your thoughts without doing any research. If Krugman had, he might have figured out that the people who are conducting Tea Parties aren't being paid. (Sure, there are organizers and leaders, but show me a political rally - or, for that matter, a riot - that doesn't have someone calling the shots.) If he knew anything about FreedomWorks, he would know that they have a massive database of people who have signed up to participate in activities like this - on their free time, when they aren't doing their day jobs. Actually, he probably could have found that out by picking up the phone and talking to someone over there - like a journalist would. If he had bothered to research the tea parties, he might have found the multiple websites that purport to be the "central headquarters" of the movement.

And how much money would it take to "AstroTurf" this much ground?

All of this makes Krugman's piece less of a thoughtful expression of an opinion in a policy discussion and more partisan hit piece. Giving him the benefit of the doubt and assuming that wasn't his goal, Krugman betrays his an intellectual sloth: the Republican Party is to be ridiculed because he cannot conceive of rational people agreeing with the philosophy of a smaller, more limited government, or opposing a massive influx of government capital to solve any problem deemed worthy.


In the real world, there are at least two sides to every story. In Krugman's mind, we the people just don't think that way - precluding the need for "research" on which so many real journalists spend time.

You might even say that Krugman's reality is "manufactured."

Sunday Funnies: A Message to Our Leaders

Jon Stewart doesn't think this week's Tea Party protesters - some of whom are sending tea bags to the White House - know what they are saying:

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	M - Th 11p / 10c
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Or, maybe they know exactly what they're saying - and sending a very specific message to Washington:

Instant Karma in Moldova

Over the past few years, there has been no shortage of media stories about the use of the internet - whether it was hailing the Obama campaign's vaunted online tactics or the role of social media in modern communication.

The dirty little secret of "viral" campaigns is that, often, they are anything but. Massive national campaigns and corporate communications departments rarely produce content or platforms for participation without some kind of backup plan to encourage membership. Obama campaign staffers followed up by phone with people who signed up online to make sure their online support translated into offline action; McDonald's nearly ubiquitous Filet-o-Fish commercial has passed from email to email largely because it started with a national media buy and had broad exposure during the NCAA tournament telecast.

From the tiny European nation of Moldova this week, however, came a flash mob that started as 20 people and wound up over 10,000.

The success of the protest - measured by the sheer numbers of participants - is a result of using communications avenues to stoke emotions that already existed. A dozen or so young Moldovans, upset with elections that maintained a Communist government, took to the streets.

The failure of the protest - like so many web 2.0 failures - can be found in the question, "Then what?"

Having 10,000 fans on Facebook, or followers on Twitter, or friends on any of hundreds of social networks online is no big trick anymore; with online advertising those numbers can be bought. There must be some action so that those numbers actually mean something.

In Moldova, that lack of forethought turned ugly. The crowd evolved into a mob, and the mob became violent. People were arrested, 43 police officers wound up in the hospital, and the parliament building was looted and destroyed (and is no longer as funkadelic as it was even last week). The demonstration was a display of emotion, but far from an effective campaign for freedom.

Where's the happy medium between joining and forgetting a Facebook cause and buring down parliament? Phone calls, letters, and votes are a good place to start. Depending on who is behind the strategy, the end goal may be product sales or market share, or testimonials from satisfied customers. Whatever that goal is, though, online strategies must be a way there, or else they are only opportunities for distraction.

Politically speaking, freedom-lovers in America eager to answer Obama's online campaign would do well to think through their own strategies to determine the most effective path to change. There's a big crowd out there, and without some form of leadership, they may just start throwing rocks.

Expanded expectations

The Columbus Blue Jackets have made the playoffs - for the first time in their eight years of existence. ESPN writer E.J. Hradek announced to Columbus hockey faithful that their "long, local nightmare is over."

Setting aside the idea that there probably should be no major sports events in Ohio that don't involve the Buckeyes, I was struck that eight years is apparently a long time to wait for a postseason berth in sports. Forty years ago the 1969 Mets set a record for the fastest postseason appearance for an expansion team - in their eight season. (Even that was considered a miracle.)

But things move a lot faster now.

With players moving more easily from team to team, and with more teams spreading out the talent, it's easier than ever to build a winner using pieces from outside an organization. And expanded playoffs have helped too - multiple rounds mean more invitations, so franchises who don't build a champion can at least build a team good enough to play a few extra games. (In the NBA, for instance, a losing record doesn't mean you're missing the playoffs.)

Add to the fact that there are more media voices (through talk radio and blogs) following teams, and it adds a bit of heat to owners - who have to answer to taxpayers as well as fans, since their venues which are frequently publicly funded.

The Blue Jackets are heading to the postseason after eight seasons - just like the 1969 Miracle Mets in terms of time, but also completely different in terms of impact and significance. I suppose it makes sense: after all, Columbus was a minor league city to New York for years.