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mandragoraThe Guardian, that bastion of British left-wing liberalism, decided to suggest that its readers write to US voters in swing states such as Ohio encouraging them not to vote for Bush.
Apparently, 11,000 letters were sent by well-meaning Guardian readers.
The paper has published a selection of the letters under the edifying heading of "Dear Limey Assholes". Which actually isn't really fair. Although some of the letters were abusive many of them were rather more polite than I'd have been if some American had written to me suggesting which way I should vote in a UK General Election.
Yes, of course the forthcoming US election is the most important in the world and perhaps some Americans don't realise how anxiously the rest of the world is awaiting the outcome. But even so, this kind of meddling is, I would have thought, guaranteed to get people's backs up no matter which country they're from.
Some Americans were even gracious enough to suggest it was a good idea. Which was really nice of them and in keeping with the vast majority of Americans I have met who are polite and gracious and well mannered. As for those who were outright abusive (as opposed to telling the writers that really, it was none of their business), well, every country has its idiots.
Article is here for anyone who wants to read the letters.
Apparently, 11,000 letters were sent by well-meaning Guardian readers.
The paper has published a selection of the letters under the edifying heading of "Dear Limey Assholes". Which actually isn't really fair. Although some of the letters were abusive many of them were rather more polite than I'd have been if some American had written to me suggesting which way I should vote in a UK General Election.
Yes, of course the forthcoming US election is the most important in the world and perhaps some Americans don't realise how anxiously the rest of the world is awaiting the outcome. But even so, this kind of meddling is, I would have thought, guaranteed to get people's backs up no matter which country they're from.
Some Americans were even gracious enough to suggest it was a good idea. Which was really nice of them and in keeping with the vast majority of Americans I have met who are polite and gracious and well mannered. As for those who were outright abusive (as opposed to telling the writers that really, it was none of their business), well, every country has its idiots.
Article is here for anyone who wants to read the letters.
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Date: 19 October 2004 23:48 (UTC)Er, 'AJ'? (I found out about the stunt from a mailing list - shock, horror *g*)
Is involuntary sterilization always a bad thing? Because the thought of the people who participated in this stupid stunt contributing to the gene pool disturbs me.
Nah, there are *lots* of stupid people around. Also, the people who participated may not be as much stupid as naive and well-meaning, just not realising how patronising the letters are. Considering the stupid things people do on a routine basis this is stupid. But not *that* stupid. *g*
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Date: 20 October 2004 00:32 (UTC)AJ Hall was speculating that the Guardian's motives may not have been entirely pure. I'm sure the eleven thousand people *meant* well, but that sort of thing isn't likely to go over well. I mean, if I got a letter from a total stranger in the States telling me to vote for Paul Martin, I think my kneejerk reaction would be "Mind your own flipping business, you nosy Yank!" And I like to think of myself as understanding.
I understand these letters backfired when Howard Dean's supporters wrote to voters in the primaries. The Dems are still apparently doing a modified version of the idea, but they're targeting registered Democrats who haven't voted at all in the past few elections. Which may not be a terrible idea. If they're registered Dems, then there's a good shot they're sympathetic to Kerry already, they're just apathetic and not voting. And they're not getting letters from overseas.