Archive for the ‘politics’ Category

Giving up control in politics = Create superfans?

Friday, August 15th, 2008

Let your voters tell others why they’re voting for you.

Jason Kander sign

Jason Kander distributes signs for his campaign where those that display them on their lawn write in why they support him on the sign.

This will scare the total crap out of the parties here in Ireland. Give someone a sign you paid for and let them fill in the bits? Lack of control, lack of control! This is what this whole new web thing is all about though and now it’s being re-applied in “the real world”.

Blogs, social networks, YouTube etc. – Give people the space to express themselves. Their dime, their time, their effort. Build those places and let them be creative. They’re better than you at being creative, they’re more intelligent than you. Be the provider, let them play. Give them the tools to spread the word and evangelise their work which is on your space. They’ll bring the traffic. For Jason they’re expressing themselves on “his space” (his sign).

I should think that entrusting someone with one of those signs means they’ll appreciate that trust and be more proud of supporting you and showing off their creativity.

Go democracy.

Pledge
Photo owned by Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com (cc)

Cowen’s Downfall – 28k views so far

Tuesday, July 1st, 2008

Made the Irish Times too.

Accolades from YouTube:

#1 – Most Viewed (This Week) – Ireland
#1 – Most Viewed (This Week) – Comedy – Ireland
#1 – Top Rated (This Month) – Comedy – Ireland

#14 – Most Discussed (This Week) – Ireland
#2 – Most Discussed (This Week) – Comedy – Ireland
#80 – Most Discussed (This Month) – Ireland
#6 – Most Discussed (This Month) – Comedy – Ireland
#55 – Most Responded (Today) – Ireland
#3 – Most Responded (Today) – Comedy – Ireland
#38 – Most Responded (This Week) – Ireland
#2 – Most Responded (This Week) – Comedy – Ireland
#25 – Most Responded (This Month) – Comedy – Ireland
#86 – Most Responded (All Time) – Comedy – Ireland
#38 – Most Viewed (This Week) – Comedy – United Kingdom
#80 – Most Viewed (This Week) – Comedy
#83 – Most Viewed (This Week) – Comedy – France
#25 – Most Viewed (This Month) – Ireland
#4 – Most Viewed (This Month) – Comedy – Ireland
#6 – Top Favorites (This Week) – Ireland
#2 – Top Favorites (This Week) – Comedy – Ireland
#24 – Top Favorites (This Month) – Ireland
#3 – Top Favorites (This Month) – Comedy – Ireland
#18 – Top Rated (This Month) – Ireland

Hot Garda Cam Action

Friday, June 27th, 2008

No, not really. Found this on YouTube:

Cowen’s Downfall

Tuesday, June 24th, 2008

Oh sweet jesus this is good. So good it had to be blogged right away. We’ve all seen these mashes before but never as a cabinet meeting:

Green Party suggest EU-wide referendum post-Lisbon

Wednesday, June 18th, 2008

From a Green Party press release:

De Burca suggests EU-wide referendum in 2009

– EU institutions cannot have authority without popular consent says Green Party Europe spokesperson

In today’s Seanad debate on the Lisbon Treaty, Green Party Spokesperson for European Affairs, Senator Deirdre de Burca called for urgent action by the European Union to address the issue of the democratic deficit and the levels of disengagement by citizens from EU institutions which she claims has been evident during referendums that occurred prior to the Lisbon treaty referendum.

“Much of the commentary that has followed the recent No vote of the Irish people to the Lisbon Treaty has concentrated on the challenge that confronts the Taoiseach, Brian Cowen, as he faces into a European Council meeting on Thursday,” she said. “It is to be hoped that a sense of European solidarity, so frequently referred to during the recent referendum campaign, will be in evidence when he meets his EU colleagues this week to discuss the way forward. The European Union’s ‘legitimacy’ problems did not begin with the Irish rejection of the Lisbon Treaty, which is symptomatic of a wider and more enduring problem within the EU.”

Senator de Burca said that as the areas of competence of the EU institutions expand, it is essential that EU institutions are not seen to have “authority without popular consent”. She argued that if this issue is not addressed by its Member States, it will undoubtedly prove a fatal flaw in what is otherwise a very successful, ambitious and innovative trans-national political project, designed to respond to the challenges of the 21st century.

Young Fine Gael sing Enda Enda Enda

Monday, June 16th, 2008

Can anyone decode the lyrics? It mentions Bertie and Harney. I’m actually impressed (no really) with the clever lyrics that I can make out. Gift Grub material, almost. The person that uploaded this video called them bigots, I don’t see how. Boggers maybe.

Young Fine Gael dress up as Gerry Adams and Mary Lou wearing a Union Jack

Tuesday, June 10th, 2008

Even though I’m in Berlin I thought you’d like this press release:

Details
Date: Tuesday, June 10 2008
Time: 1.30pm
Location: Merrion Street entrance to Leinster House.

Photo Opp: Two male YFG members wearing lifelike face masks will dress as Mary Lou McDonald (in a Spice Girls Union Jack dress) and Gerry Adams in a Union Jack Tuxedo. They will hold a 6X4 foot sign emblazoned with “No EU = Britain Runs Our Economy”.

Have they totally lost the plot? They are out republicaning the republicans and have decided to dress in drag and demean Mary Lou by equating her with Ginger Spice? Given Fine Gael’s gimp-mask-wearing style cow-towing to Maggie Thatcher and the British Governments all through the few years they were in power, this anti-British sentiment is a bit rich.

It gets just that litte bit better as they start going all anti-Unionist. The proddyGaels will not like this:

PRESS / PHOTOCALL NOTICE:

SF prefer dependence on Britain to a stronger EU- YFG

35 years of saying “NO” would make Paisley proud

Young Fine Gael (YFG) has called on voters to reject the anti-European messages of Sinn Fein when they cast their votes on the Lisbon Treaty next Thursday.

“Sinn Fein has said they are pro-Europe. When you consider they opposed EEC membership in the first place in 1972, and have made persistent vicious attacks against the EU since then, this claim is completely laughable,” according to YFG President Barry Walsh.

“In 1972, prior to joining the EEC, Ireland’s economy was completely dominated by Britain:

* Interest rates were dictated by the British Chancellor of the Exchequer
o Currency levels were handed to us by the British Government
o Our agriculture sector worked hard to provide the UK market with cheap food
o Our biggest export to Britain was our young people, who worked hard to build up THEIR economy and infrastructure.
o We were the 2nd poorest country in Europe

“Since then however, we have broken free of their stranglehold:

o 1 million jobs have been created
o Our biggest exports, to the Single Market of 500 million people, are now our food and technology products
o €58 billion in funding has flowed into Ireland from the EU budget
o We are now the 2nd richest country in Europe.

“So it is clear that if the Irish people had listened to Sinn Fein in 1972, or at any referendum since then, we would still be in the economic doldrums and dependent on Britain. Perhaps this is the plan ‘B’ they are so anxious we vote for.

RTE’s Prime Time to field Lisbon questions via YouTube

Wednesday, June 4th, 2008

Prime Time will be taking questions from folks about the Lisbon Treaty via YouTube. They will play the best ones for a high-profile EU politician (to be confirmed tomorrow morning) and have him/her answer those questions.

The special ‘interactive’ segment will air on next Tuesday’s Prime Time and the full version will be posted on RTÉ.ie/Lisbon.

I believe this is an exclusive. Well done to RTE for doing this and giving people the chance to ask questions. Hopefully if it’s successful we might see more of this happen with a very conservative RTE. I’m sure the progressive people in there would be able to do more with a positive reaction to it. It’d be great to see the Prime Time segment go up on YouTube too!

Told you so – Uimhear a do

Friday, May 30th, 2008

Four days ago. Today:

Ilac Opinionator

Told you so

Monday, May 26th, 2008

Well I did:

Fine Gael voting machine in the Ilac Centre, maybe they’ll do better in Poshrock.

IMG_0199

Stewart came up with a better suggestion.