Feeling good today... Doing my normal routine this AM... You know... Scouring through the DMR... gettin' my Dunkin Donuts coffee on... a few smokes... and of course... Sunday morning is not Sunday morning... unless there is bacon involved... and Meet the Press. Sorry, I don't make these rules. While getting my Sunday morning news buzz errr fix on... I saw something in the Opinion section of the DMR... wasn't really feeling like saying something about it... you know... until... I killed a pound of bacon... it's my spinach I guess... so let's take a stab at it.THE TEA PARTY BILLBOARD IN MASON CITY - Yeah... You've all heard about this right? If not here's the deets. So the North Iowa Tea Party thought it would a be super clever idea to put up a billboard with Hitler on it. This would sound like a GREAT idea if you know... you hit your head with a tack hammer every morning. Yeps, I said it. Listen... I get their point and they idea they were going with... but uh... you may wanna think it through next time... For you people in Story City and for the one who are about to send me massive amounts of love letters... let me walk you through this.
POLITICAL JUNKIES/ACTIVIST ARE NOT NORMAL PEOPLE - I can say this because I am one. Here's the thing. Political activists/junkies are also history buffs by nature... (you all want in on the secret? Political Science courses are glorified history classes)... so yeah. We are very astute to history... and what it means if we repeat it. But... normal average people don't think in this way. Here's why the Tea Party people thought it was a good idea... You show a picture of Hitler... to the majority of people... the first thing they will think is evil... killer... you catch my drift, right? Um... not everyone thinks. "Oh hey, that Hilter was a socialist." Sorry friends... you tea party folks can argue with me until you're blue in the face... but that's the reality... and that is why it was a #horriblejoboutofyou for even thinking that this was a good idea.
BILLBOARDS AND YARD SIGNS CHANGE MINDS AND WIN ELECTIONS - Do I need to begin my list of reasons why the Tea Party movement is gonna last maybe just as long as the last the Ross Perot fad? How do I know that this isn't gonna last long at all? Because this local chapter's first big expenditure was to spend it on a billboard... One of the most expensive and least effective means of political advertising. I could list a hundreds of more... but this decision was the one that told me... nogga nogga nogga nogga... not gonna be around that long.
G$, YOU HATE FREEDOM, YOU COMMIE! Sigh... yeps... I can already hear the emails, texts and carrier pigeons with your comments on this. Listen, I get what you're trying to say. POTUS (that's President of the United States for you folks in Roland) has policies that are socialist. Bet get this friends... you have to dumb it down a bit. You already got people fired up. Don't pull some fraternity prank for publicity for the cause. Organize... be smart about it... and then do it.
BUT G$ WE GOT EARNED MEDIA OUT OF IT - Yeah... then you had to take it down. Sorry pals, this was just... a bad idea. But, hey... you still think its a good idea? That's fine... who doesn't like a tack hammer to the head in the morning, right? Oh... not this guy.
LETTERS, THEY GET LETTERS, SACKS AND SACK OF LETTERS - Hahaha, sacks. Oh, but Kuwait a minute. So yeah... on Sunday's... the first 3 sections I grab are the first section, then the opinion and then the sports page. The 2nd page in the opinion section? Letters to the Editor. I will say first... that none of the letters about the Billboard were even in the North Iowa area. Not even close. Des Moines, Waukee, Iowa City and Ames? Hmmm... hey Iowa Democrat Party (IDP)... next time, how about getting some peeps from the area to send a letter.... got it? Then I will believe it a little better... also... another thing. But again... hahaha sacks...
THANKS FOR PLAYING - Yeah... among the letters in the DMR... one was from State Senator Jack Hatch... really? There really coulda been a better person to send it in, IDP... don't you all have someone from up there? Anyone? Yeah... because I'm not about to take a lecture from a guy who thought it was alright at the time to say the N word in the Capitol. Sorry... but credibility can leave in just one word... and as Hershel mentioned the other day... good to see it's alright to use those words... according to IDP and others. Nice.
SERIOUSLY FELLAS - Dudes, I'm with ya... talking to you Tea Party peeps. And believe me... I sincerely love your enthusiasm. It's freaking epic. Actually, it's pretty effing awesome. But we gotta play smart. I think I have said this before... but hell, I say it again. I subscribe to the rules from Roadhouse: There's a time to be nice and a time to be not nice. Absolutely... right on. Gotta stand up and fight... BUT, I also subscribe to the notion and case against this "Confrontational Conservative" garbage. Let me walk you through it... At your job and or the business you own... When you are confrontational to your customers... how does that go? In your relationships... When you are confrontational to your friends, family and... especially your better half... when you are confrontational to these folks... how does that usually work out? Pretty good, right? Unless you are living in a bizarro world or your better half is into some freaky deeky stuff... being confrontational all the time... usually isn't the best way to keep customers, business, friends, family and you'll be spending some quality time with the couch at night... In the epic words of my old poli sci prof at Iowa, "Am I communicating?"
AND FINALLY... As Coach Burton always said, "Anyway, long story short..." This was a bad idea... and leaves a bruise on the movement. But hey... it could be a lot worse right? I would rather have this issue on our side of the aisle than dealing with a standard bearer who isn't raising money... unless it comes from the Democratic Governors Association... Yeah dudes... serious... you see Skinny this week? Next question is... when does Geri Huser switch? Hey... and its not just friends on the Eastside... Sources close to QCI are telling us... the Southside crew... isn't feeling so hot about it either... And in cases like that? They take care of themselves first...
Anyhoop... more to come on this and other stuff... Until next time... crank this epic tune that is becoming the Campaign 2010 theme here at QCI... Stay thirsty my friends.
