Chain Email Smears And The Success Of Obama's Rapid Response

laflIn our high-tech world, John McCain fears going online but some of his supporters have no trouble writing vicious smear emails and sending them to everyone they know, creating the chain-effect. It was supposed to be a below the radar tactic that riled up people's irrational fears of Muslims. When it wasn't effective enough, they added that Obama could be the anti-Christ. It is an absurd idea, but this is America and people will believe a lot of stupid shit.

Normally this would be allowed to go on and while Democrats were aware of such smears, they wouldn't do anything about it ('staying above it all' mentality) and yet the garbage emanating from the GOP hacks still stunk things up. Now I though that this pattern of immobility would continue this year while the attacks worsened in their frequency and 'quality,' especially with a black man as the Presidential nominee. I treated the rapid-response team with skepticism, wondering if anything could put the spine back in our party.

Well my doubts have been beaten out of me with the help of a couple stories in the press that have shown the growing toxicity of these malicious emails. In South Carolina Mayor Funderbunk of Fort Hill has been chastised for sending along the chain email. Today we found out that Dutchess County's GOP Chair Corinne Weber resigned her post after it was exposed that she too took part in spreading hate-filled lies about Obama. No longer are these GOP officials allowed to conduct themselves like this without scrutiny.

These are two examples that show people are not going to get away with this ridiculous political, racist and obscene hackery. Not only do these stories make Republicans hesitate before pressing the send button but it provides ample opportunity for people to learn that the email is pure garbage, before they even get it in their inbox from one of their McCain-supporting family and friends.

Smear emails like purporting that Obama is the anti-Christ thrives on getting around in the shadows. When we shine light on it like the rapid-response of the campaign has done, the effectiveness of the tactic disappears