Posts tagged Politics at Switched

Posts with tag politics

Twitter, Vlogging Go to Washington, DC

by Tim Stevens, posted Jun 29th 2008 at 3:12PM

In some ways it seems like the more our government changes the more it stays the same; petty squabbles over pork barrel spending are still a common occurrence, and there's that ever-present clear line between our two party system. Things are changing, though, including the adoption of modern tech and social networking by some politicians. Robert Scoble, a blogger at Scobilizer.com, takes a look at these changes in a series of posts from Washington, D.C.

In his first report first, Scoble speaks with various politicians and makes some surprising discoveries, like Janet Pelosi using a WordPress blog and Representative Tim Ryan's plans for fielding a debate using Twitter. (Not the sort of debate you and your friends wage there when trying to figure out where to get dinner on a Friday night -- a real debate that could impact the direction of the country.) But, some things are still much the same.

When Congressman John Culberson spoke with President Bush and showed him QIK.com, a site that lets you host video streams online directly from your phone, the President was intrigued and interested in being interviewed on the site. However, the Secret Service quickly nixed that idea for security reasons, meaning a presidential vlog is probably unlikely at least for a few years. [Source: Scobelizer.com]

Presidential Debates Held Via Twitter

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Jun 25th 2008 at 5:38PM

We've been talking about this election cycle being the being the true beginning of politics in the Internet age, but if you had told us even just a few weeks ago that the first campaign sanctioned debate between the Obama and McCain camps would be held via Twitter, we would have thought you were crazy. But that is exactly the venue that has representatives from the campaigns facing off in a debate moderated by Ana Marie Cox, a blogger at techPresident.

The 140 character limit that Twitter imposes on its messages does stymie the ability for the campaigns to delve too deeply into policy issues -- not to mention compromising their adherence to the constructs of the English language -- but it also limit their ability to give long winded non-answers to questions.

The debate has allowed the average American (well, the average American with a Twitter account at least) to participate in the discussion in a way the YouTube debates promised, but failed to deliver on. [Source: BetaNews]

McCain Offers $300 Million for Green Car

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Jun 25th 2008 at 7:45AM

John McCain is trying to apply the lessons learned from the X-Prize to presidential politics, and has proposed offering a substantial $300 million prize package to the company that develops a battery that leapfrogs the current technology found in hybrids like the Toyota Prius. That's $1 for every person in the country. McCain also plans to offer a $5,000 tax credit for every zero-emission vehicle sold in the U.S., though there seems to be some confusion as to whether it would go to the consumer or the company. Also unclear is whether the $300 million prize is open to only American companies, which disqualify many businesses with the most advanced engine and battery technology on the market.

Critics have derided the move as a gimmick, similar to the proposal he floated earlier for a gas tax holiday, which would prove to have little benefit for the consumer and would only cost the government tax revenue. They have also pointed out that handing over government money as a prize flies in the face of McCain's stated free market ideals, and past votes in the Senate.

Also of concern is that most current proposals for increasing battery efficiency in vehicles revolve around Lithium-Ion (Li-ion) technology, the same batteries that power our laptops and cell phones. We'd be much more interested in seeing Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFePO4) batteries, like those used in the OLPC, scaled up to car size, since they can be recharged more times without degrading capacity, and lack the standard Li-ion batteries' tendency to burst into flames. [Source: USA Today, JohnMcCain.com]

McCain Uses Video Game Music In Campaign Ad, Upsetting Composer

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Jun 20th 2008 at 2:15PM

In what we're sure is a subtle way to try and connect younger voters, the McCain campaign has been using a chunk of music composed by Christopher Lennertz for 'Medal of Honor: European Assault' in a commercial. Lennertz is unhappy about it's use, however, as he is an Obama booster. Unfortunately for Lennertz, the rights to the music belong to the game's publisher EA, and not the composer.

Lennertz did, however, release a statement voicing his dissatisfaction with the McCain campaign for not seeking his approval or even notifying him of the music's use. Lennertz only found out about his music being used in the commercial when he started recieving e-mails from friends and family.

"I would like to think that someone who believes in the American ideals of business and creativity like Sen. McCain supposedly does, would not want to disgrace or inflict any hardship or ill-will on the artists who create in this country by using their works to promote products and agendas which with they disagree."

Lennertz ened his statement by declaring his support for Senator Obama. The full text of his statement can be found here. [Source: Joystiq]

Record High Blogger Arrests in 2007

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Jun 18th 2008 at 2:10PM

As blogs have become more powerful and prominent as sources of political information and dissent, governments have increased their crackdown on the online outlets of opinion and news. According to the World Information Access (WIA) report, 64 bloggers have been arrested since 2003, but 2007 saw the number of bloggers arrested triple from the previous year. Most of the bloggers arrested have been in China, Iran, and Egypt. The arrests usually lead to jail time, with the average sentence handed down for blogging being 15 months.

The number of bloggers arrested is hard to measure due to the difficulty in confirming identities and that arrests even took place at all in these highly secretive nations. WIA expects the number of arrests of bloggers to continue to increase in 2008 as political uncertainty looms in China and Pakistan and as blogs become even more ubiquitous. [Source: BBC]

Has Obama's Campaign Been Helped by Embracing the Web?

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Jun 15th 2008 at 12:35PM

An editorial by Paul Saffo at ABC News argues that Obama's victory over Hillary is due to his "cybergenic" nature, and that his advantage and passion of Web-based media will lead him to victory over John McCain in November.

According to Saffo, Hillary's campaign was dismissive of the personal nature of the Internet and instead chose to focus on the mass-media of television. Meanwhile, Obama embraced the Web, taking a page from Howard Dean's 2004 campaign, and was able to race past his competitors in the Democratic field. This advantage is even more exaggerated when up against McCain, who Saffo likens to someone who has only heard of the Internet from National Geographic.

It's hard to argue with Saffo's conclusions. John F. Kennedy's embrace of television helped him trounce Nixon, and Franklin D. Roosevelt garnered support amongst the population with the use of radio for his fireside chats. The presidential candidate who is most passionate about the chosen technological medium of the day tends to claim victory. Some of Saffo's conclusions actually sound a bit familiar to us... [Source: ABC News]

Reminder: McCain Can't Use a Computer

by Christine Whitney, posted Jun 12th 2008 at 1:02PM

Oh McCain candidacy. First there was the cottage cheese and jello thing, and now we are once again reminded of this: In a (sort-of) recent Yahoo video re-highlighted by HuffPo, members of the Republican Party admit to not watching movies (un-American!) and favoring PCs over Macs (gasp).

Mitt Romney, Mike Huckabee, et. al admit their love for the computer of the Right, though Romney tries to play political by throwing in a mention of his kids' Mac use.

This sounds real boring, but wait -- the real banger of the video comes later, when less-pretty-and-popular presidential hopeful John McCain admits he doesn't know how to use a computer.

"My wife does it for me," was pretty much the gist of his response.

Really? For real? We almost think this is an ill-timed joke, as even our Nanas can peck out an e-mail on their Mesozoic desktops. But jeez, John. That's gonna cost you the presidency.

Mac? PC? Who are they? [Source: Yahoo!, via HuffPo]

US to Lift Ban on Sending Cell Phones to Cuba

by Terrence O'Brien, posted May 22nd 2008 at 12:02AM

Cell phones are finally available for purchase in Cuba, but they're so prohibitively expensive that many Cubans can't afford them. Luckily, President Bush recently announced that the ban on sending cell phones to Cuba would be lifted soon, which means that Americans will be able to send phones to relatives or friends who can't afford them.

It's perhaps just the first step towards more open exchanges with the communist country as it softens its restrictions on non-essential items like consumer electronics and home appliances. Soon Cubans will be able to send dirty text messages and vacuum their living rooms all at the same time. [Source: BBC, Via: Textually]

Kid Sells Video Games, Then Donates Proceeds to Hillary's Campaign

by Tim Stevens, posted May 13th 2008 at 10:37AM

Kid Hawks Video Games, Donates Proceeds to Hillary

It's been a bitter fight for Democrats, with Hillary supporters either digging deep to try to pull out a come-from-behind victory for their candidate, or instead jumping ship and joining the Obama train. One 11-year-old isn't giving up on Hillary yet, though, since it appears he's sold most of his worldly possessions to scrounge together a $440 donation to Clinton's campaign, which is said to be $20-million in debt.

According to the Associated Press (AP), the boy, Dalton Hatfield from McAndrews, Kentucky, sold his video games and his bicycle to get the money, which he presented to former President Bill Clinton last Friday at a Hillary support rally in West Virginia (to give to his wife's campaign, of course). As the AP story reports, Clinton was nearly moved to tears when presented with the check.

Besides his support for Hillary, Hatfield also apparently looks up to Bill Clinton, and hopes to emulate them both some day. "I want to be governor or a senator, then president," Hatfield said afterwards. Well, if he stays this dedicated to politics, he might have a chance. [Source: AP, via Top of the Ticket/LA Times]

Anti-Obama Hoax E-Mails Still Fooling Some Folks

by Terrence O'Brien, posted May 9th 2008 at 7:12AM

Stupid White Men Still Believe Obama Hoax E-Mails

You may remember a poll a few years ago that showed 70 percent of Americans believed that Saddam Hussein was responsible for 9/11 (as recently as June of 2007 40 percent still do), or the Swift Boat campaign against John Kerry in 2004. Who believes these outlandish things? Stupid people who don't seem to be able to pick up a newspaper.

This election cycle has its own crazed bits of propaganda similar to the Swift Boat campaign, or the push polling about McCain's out-of-wedlock African-American child. The bizarre attacks, primarily being tossed around by Fox News, this time surround Barack Obama, and the only people who seem to be swallowing the Kool-Aid are some pretty uninformed voters, most recently in Indiana, according to a report in the New York Daily News.

Take a look at a couple of the responses the Daily News got on the ground in Indiana leading up to the primary earlier this week:

"I'm kind of still up in the air between McCain and Hillary... I'll be honest with you. Barack scares the hell out of me... He swore on the Koran."
"I can't stand him... He's a Muslim. He's not even pro-American as far as I'm concerned."

Hoax e-mails long ago debunked and -- we thought -- forgotten are still informing the decisions of some folks in the suburban and rural midwest, according to the Daily News. The e-mails that have been circulating claim alternately that he's a Muslim, that he's a radical racist Christian, that he's unpatriotic, that he refuses to say the pledge of allegiance, or that he's a communist. How can all of these things be true? They can't, but that doesn't stop some lazy people from believing anything they read in an e-mail.

So how does one stop oneself from becoming part of the problem? Double check "facts" from e-mails with reputable news sources like the Associated Press (AP) or Reuters. Or follow some basic guidelines for skepticism laid out by FactCheck.org. And the next time you get a poorly spelled e-mail from Kofi Annan claiming that Barack Obama ate a cheese burger with Osama Bin Laden in front of a village of starving children, listen to that little voice in the back of your head that says "that can't be true." [Source: NY Daily News, via: Wired]

Phishing Tactics Used to Suppress Vote In North Carolina

by Terrence O'Brien, posted May 6th 2008 at 7:03AM

The race for the Democratic nomination for the president just gets uglier everyday. And in case you needed more proof that Obama and Hillary will never end up on the same ticket, here is a story about voter suppression that seems to be taking cues from phishing and identity theft scams.

A group called Women's Voices, Women's Vote has been cold calling voters in primarily African-American areas of North Carolina and implying that they had not properly registered to vote. The automated message from someone identifying themselves as Lamont Williams says, "In the next few days, you will receive a voter-registration packet in the mail. All you need to do is sign it, date it and return your application. Then you will be able to vote and make your voice heard. Please return the voter-registration form when it arrives. Thank you."

At no point does the call identify the group who is calling, address a specific recipient, or even mention that the person receiving the call may already be registered to vote properly.

Women's Voices, Women's Vote has acknowledged making the calls, but has denied the accusations of voter suppression. While the group has not officially endorsed a candidate, the donating habits of the president of the organization, Page Gardner, betray her loyalties. Gardner donated $2,500 to Clinton's HILLPAC in 2006, and in 2005 she donated $4,200 to the Clinton campaign . She has not donated any money to the Obama camp. Gardner is not alone, many at the organization have connections to the Clintons whether through donations, or as members of Bill's administration.

Following North Carolina State Attorney General Roy Cooper's recent demand to halt the calls -- illegal under state law because political calls must identify a sponsor -- Women's Voices, Women's Vote has stopped the practice. [Source: Wired]

5 Million E-Mail Messages -- How the White House Lost Them...

by Will Safer, posted May 3rd 2008 at 12:21PM

We've all lived through this type of scenario: You're looking for an old e-mail message, maybe one you sent a few years ago, maybe one from an old account or that you sent from an old computer. Despite all your good efforts you can't find the message. It was important but now it is lost.

Imagine losing five million messages. Important messages. Messages you're supposed to keep copies of according to the law.

That's the very real scenario the White House is faced with today, the result of the Bush administration implementing a seemingly haphazard copying and archiving system for all messages sent by executive branch employees between March 2003 and October 2005 -- and this incomplete system is apparently still in place, according to a fascinating explanation on Ars Technica.

When the Bush administration came into power in 2001, it changed the e-mail system from Lotus Notes to Microsoft Exchange, effectively disabling the automatic e-mail archiving process that the Clinton administration had put into place. Instead, the new system relied on manual saving, file naming and archiving of all e-mail, a method that leaves plenty of opportunities for messages to be lost, deleted or even altered.

Now, in response to a lawsuit, a federal magistrate judge has ordered the White House to find all the missing email.

We feel sorry for the poor IT guys who now have to search for all those messages.

If it were up to you, how would you go about finding and preserving all the old White House e-mail? [Source: Ars Technica, via Machinist]

Video Game Teaches Immigrants How to Become Citizens

by Terrence O'Brien, posted May 2nd 2008 at 5:24PM

A Video Game That Teaches You About the Immigrant Experience

We're all used to video games that "teach" us to race cars, perform criminal acts, and save humanity from aliens, but what about a game that teaches you about human rights, immigration laws, and the struggles of those less fortunate than you? That's the stated goal of 'ICED: I Can End Deportation,' a game chronicling the attempts of several immigrant teens to avoid arrest and deportation in their effort to become citizens of the United States.

The game is produced by Breakthrough, an organization dedicated to promoting human rights and dignity. The graphics and game play certainly aren't going to be mistaken for your latest PlayStation 3 title from a major game studio, but that's not the point of 'ICED.' 'ICED' is an attempt to use a popular interactive medium to educate people about a misunderstood and controversial topic, so go easy on the gameplay critiques! [Source: ICEDgame.com, via: Boing Boing]

What Will the Presidential Candidates Look Like in Four Years?

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Apr 30th 2008 at 3:07PM

What Will the Candidates Look Like in 4 Years

Being president of the United States certainly takes its toll on the body -- just look at the before and after photos of our current president. In 2000, George Bush was a young, energetic looking CEO type, with more pepper than salt in his hair, whereas now he just looks tired and haggard.

PopPhoto took it upon itself to find out what four years of the presidency would do to the top three competitors for the office. Adobe's PhotoShop was used to add gray hair (or, in the case of McCain, removed hair), deepen wrinkles, and add age spots.

The photo wizards at PopPhoto have done an amazing, if heavy handed, job rendering the candidates. Check the read link to see a haggard Hillary, and a seasoned Obama, or just stare at the image of McCain above as a member of the army of the un-dead. Or, you can just see how bad these three contenders look in HDTV now. [Source: PopPhoto, Via: Machinist]

Uncensored Cuban Blogs Speak Out

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Apr 28th 2008 at 3:03PM

Yoani Sanchez, dressed as a tourist in her own country, ducks into posh hotels that provide Internet access for foreign travelers on a regular basis, just so she can spend large chunks of her modest paycheck to post complaints about the Cuban government on her blog. Her blog, Generation Y, is widely read both in Cuba and abroad and has earned her many fans. Sanchez posts under her real name, something that just 10 short years ago would have been unthinkable and would have guaranteed her arrest.

Thanks to being granted the right to own personal computers one month ago, younger generations of Cubans are becoming more vocal in their opposition to government policies and less afraid to openly state their opinions. Sites such as Sin EVAsion and Petrosalvaje also feature Cubans voicing opposition to the government under their real names.

While the Cuban government has yet to try and arrest the authors and owners of these Web sites ,it is still dangerous for them to operate. These brave Cubans risk arrest every day by illegally connecting to the Internet and posting anti-government speech. [Source: AP/AOL News, via USA Today]

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Twitter, Vlogging Go to Washington, DC

Presidential Debates Held Via Twitter

McCain Offers $300 Million for Green Car

McCain Uses Video Game Music In Campaign Ad, Upsetting Composer

Record High Blogger Arrests in 2007

Has Obama's Campaign Been Helped by Embracing the Web?

Reminder: McCain Can't Use a Computer

US to Lift Ban on Sending Cell Phones to Cuba

Kid Sells Video Games, Then Donates Proceeds to Hillary's Campaign

Anti-Obama Hoax E-Mails Still Fooling Some Folks

Phishing Tactics Used to Suppress Vote In North Carolina

5 Million E-Mail Messages -- How the White House Lost Them...

Video Game Teaches Immigrants How to Become Citizens

What Will the Presidential Candidates Look Like in Four Years?

Uncensored Cuban Blogs Speak Out

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