The Hacker Chronicles - A…the Computer Underground/The Hacker Chronicles - A Tour of the Computer Underground (P-80 Systems).iso/cud2/cud208e.txt

Text File | 1992-09-26 | 18KB | 335 lines

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From: well![e-mail](Jim Warren)
Subject: pc's & political action
Date: Sat, 13 Oct 90 16:04:10 pdt

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***  CuD #2.08: File 5 of 5: PC's and Political Action           ***
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Jim Thomas recently asked me to write about computers and political action.
This is a slightly edited version of materials I wrote for a recent online
interview on the WELL -- Whole Earth 'Lectronic Link -- in Sausalito CA.
   -- Jim Warren, [e-mail], [phone]/voice

 LOCAL & NATIONAL POLITICAL POWER THROUGH PERSONAL COMPUTING

Most folks feel powerless to change the direction of public and political
events around them -- in their town, state or their nation.  In fact, using
computers, we can have political impact far beyond what is otherwise possible
for most "middle-income" individuals.  I state this from repeated personal
experience and success.  Here are some suggestions:

First, I need to review some essential "modern math" that every successful
politician knows by heart.  Thereafter, I'll give specific examples of its
application, greatly empowered by computer usage.

 POLITICIANS' BASIC ARITHMETIC

An illustrative hypothetical:

Consider a voting district of, say, 600,000 population -- perhaps a city-wide
or county-wide district.  More than likely about half of its population will
be of voting age AND registered to vote.  Therefore:
  600,000 population = 300,000 registered voters
But, only 40%-70% will vote (low-end for local and school board elections;
high-end for tight Presidential and Gubernatorial elections).  Therefore:
  300,000 registered voters = 120,000 to 210,000 actual voters
Now, the goodie!  Most elections for an open seat are won by less than a 5%
margin.  And, almost all "professional" politicians will run for several
open seats during their political career.  (Even if they are an incumbent,
now, they plan to run for a higher open seat, later.)  Therefore:
  120,000 voters = 6,000 swing-vote for a minor election
  210,000 voters = 10,500 swing-vote for a major or Presidential election
But, if there are only two candidates, only one half of the swing vote needs
to be switched from one candidate to the other.  Therefore:

In a 2-candidate race for an open seat in a district of 600,000-population,
*YOU* need only affect 3,000-5,250 votes to change the election.  That is, a
single individual need only switch 1/2-to-1 percent of the voters.  Your
power becomes even greater when there are more than two candidates.

  And, all of these figures scale, up or down, for the size of *your*
target-of-interest, uh, District.
And, there's a hueristic for which there is less objective proof:
One person, actively interested in an election, will critically influence
20 voters -- if the person does no more than pursue casual political
discussion in the course of normal business and social interaction.

Aside:  Perhaps the definitive periodical for practical politiking is
CAMPAIGNS & ELECTIONS, published 7 times yearly, $29.95/year,
C&E, 1835 K St NW Suite 403, Washington DC 20006.  It has carried a
"Campaigns & Computers" section for about ten years or more.  This is the
BYTE Magazine of effective political action.  [For those who want to
accomplish political change; not just bitch about it.]

                    POLITICAL ACTION: TUTORIAL PREFACE


   The uniform wisdom among political campaign managers is that the following
 are effective campaign tools -- listed in approximate order of importance:
   0.  Face-to-face contact, by candidate or supporter, door to door and in
 public places.  Yeah, I know, I wouldn't do it, either -- mentioned, here,
 only for completeness as *the* most effective thing someone can do.

   1.  "Dear friend" notes and cards, distributed by candidates' supporters to
 people who know the writer.  I.e., the best advertising is still word-of-
 mouth recommendations from someone you know -- even though they may be the
 mildest of aquaintences.  ("This guy, Charlie somebody, told me a Yugo was
 *much* better than a Honda, and ...")

  [2.  Candidate statements included in ballot materials. <specific to Calif.>
 These optional statements have a word limit, are written by the candidates
 (i.e., they have broad latitude in, uh, "accuracy"), and their printing
 costs are shared equally among the candidates choosing to have such
 statements distributed as part of the official ballot materials.  These are
 the most read by voters and are given the greatest credence by the voters --
 in spite of the fact that they are candidates' "un-refereed" statements.
 This is something an outside activist can't do, except possibly in the FOR
 and AGAINST statements for a ballot initiative.  It's something over which
 outsiders have no control.  Mentioned for completeness and importance.]

   3.  Directly-distributed materials -- letters, brochures, leaflets, etc.
 (Hot pads and videotapes have been interesting tools in recent elections.)
 These are usually distributed by direct-mail, but are also commonly distrib-
 uted by hand, door to door.

   4.  Television advertising can be powerful, but only for creating emotional
 bias -- for or against.  And, it ain't for average-income folks.

   5.  Radio advertising runs a distant fifth, and is often considered almost
 useless outside of drive-time ads -- which are costly.  Not for citizen
 activists -- though call-in's to talk-shows can be effective.

   6.  Signs and posters are uniformly considered to be almost completely
 useless except for encouraging the candidate's volunteer campaign workers --
 who want to see 'em and want to display 'em.  Ditto for lapel buttons.  Junk!

 I.e., effective political action hinges on targeted communications with/to
 large numbers of people.  [Surprise!  Politics involves people!]
   "Target" and "large numbers" imply that computers are applicable.
 And how!

 [Please note:  Anyone who recognizes these political realities has more
 potential political power than those who are unaware of them.  Anyone who
 utilizes this information enhances their political power in comparison to
 those who fail to use 'em.  All of it takes work and effort; most of it can
 be used by rich and poor, alike; none of it requires computers -- but much
 of it can be greatly enhanced by computer-assistance.]

 EFFECTIVE CITIZEN/POLITICAL ACTION #1:  "DEAR FRIEND ..."

   Send out *lots* of "Dear friend" cards or notes.  They can be very brief
 -- little more than, "I support XXX and hope you will, too."  And, the need
 your [apparantly original] signature.  If the recipient's likely to at least
 vaguely remember your name, it's worth sending 'em a note.
 The note or message can be printed from original copy -- typewritten is
 perhaps best; legible *brief* hand-written notes are probably second best
 (which can still be xeroxed or quick-copy printed); fancy typeset notes
 are least effective for communications intended to have a personal flavor.
 (Dear friends don't typeset notes to dear friends!)

   COMPUTER-ASSISTED CREATION & DISTRIBUTION

   Of *course*, you maintain your personal and business address book on
 your personal computer -- making addressing easy.  And your letter-quality
 or lasersetter can crank out the notes -- and have 'em seem highly
 individualized!  (Folks know about form letters -- but not from friends and
 aquaintences.)
   A computer greatly enhances this political power over the alternative of
 hand-writing or hand-typing -- more productivity per unit of time or effort.

 EFFECTIVE CITIZEN/POLITICAL ACTION #2:  MASS DISTRIBUTION

   OK -- you contacted your friends (both of 'em, heh!), but want to have a
 still greater impact.  I mean *serious* impact!

 POWER OF THE [PRINTING] PRESS

   Remember that directly-distributed written materials remain one of
 the most effective tools for campaigning -- distributed by hand, or by mail.
 Such materials from anyone *other* than the candidates and their campaign
 committees -- clearly identified as "independent" -- are even *more*
 effective.  So:

   Write and distribute your own note, letter, leaflet, newsletter or tabloid
 newspaper.  Cover your neighborhood ("My family and I live nearby and feel
 this is so important that we've hand-delivered this to you. ...").  Distrib-
 ute it to your business clients.  *If* it is a sufficiently sincere and
 effectively written item, you might risk putting it on automobile wind-
 shields (the risk is recipients' irratation factor;  But, I used to paper
 Silicon Valley with "Windshield Editions" of the Silicon Gulch Gazette and
 received *no* complaints -- to my considerable amazement).

   Finally, round up the loot and blitz-mail it throughout the voting
 district you want to impact.  Do it as a newsletter or tabloid newspaper.
 Businesses sympathetic to your "cause" can be significant underwriters of
 the expense, by placing advertisements -- and writing 'em off as a business
 expense.  But, all that takes a minor but serious publishing operation.

 POWER OF THE [COMPUTER} PRESS

  **Desktop publishing on personal computers *greatly* empower such efforts.**

 TARGETING PROBLEM

   However, this is a "shotgun" approach.  Figure about half the homes you
 reach won't have a resident who goes and votes.  That means lots of time
 wasted if doing hand distribution; or ~50-cents per useful contact by mail
 -- before the next postage-rate hike.

 PERSONAL COMPUTER TARGETING SOLUTIONS

   So far, people can get the lists of registered voters from the Registrar
 of Voters -- in [marginally useful] paper form or [powerful!] computerized
 form (magtape, floppies, perhaps online -- depends on the budget and service
 orientation of the Registrar).  <true in California and *some* other states>

 PRIVACY ADVOCATES, BEWARE!

   God help us if and when those who are in power prohibit citizen access to
 such essential citizen-action information -- probably enacting such
 prohibitions under the guise of "privacy protection".
   Don't want to bother them voters with any o' that distrubing information
 from non-incumbants.  ;-)

 COMPUTER *POWER* FOR THE PEOPLE

   With the voter reg data in your computer, you can generate "walking order"
 lists of voters and their addresses.  This allows neighborhood leafleting
 volunteers to expend their limited time and energy efficiently.
   The voter reg data, of course, forms a mailing list base -- trivially
 processed to limit only to favorable party registrants, addresses/areas,
 perhaps age groups (information often in the lists), etc.
   Merge-purged with other lists of interest, the utility per piece of
 literature-n-postage can be further enhanced.

 COMMUNITY & HOMEOWNER/RENTER EMPOWERMENT

   When I fought for equitable, community-oriented treatment of mountain and
 rural residents and homeowners in unincorporated San Mateo County, I
 used the County's property assessment lists, in electronic form -- public
 records, rightfully so.  Each parcel record indicated name and address of
 the owner -- the first-cut mailing list.  Many lived outside the County;
 deleted to reduce useless mailings.  Homeowner exemptions were flagged --
 which I used for mailings targeted for homeowners.  Those flagged as having
 residential improvements but without homeowner flags were targets for
 material concerning renter interests.

   When I wanted to address property-based voter-action, the logical
 intersection of voter and assessor lists produced a powerful target list.
   For construction-related issues, I added the state lists of licensed
 building contractors, real estate brokers, and real estate salespeople.
 These records are available in many states *by law*.

 PUBLIC RECORDS POWER

   At least in California, all these records are open to the public under
 the State's *potent* Public Records Act, and -- by explicit terms of that
 Act -- copies are available for no more than the direct cost of duplication.
   Further refinements -- power enhancements -- are possible by marrying
 different versions of these records over time (longer-term residents, more
 experienced builders, brokers, etc.).

 PUBLIC RECORDS CAVEAT

   One fly that occasionally appears in California's public records availabil-
 ity ointment:  Because the Public Records Act is vague on the issue, some
 repressive agencies respond to requests for copies -- which they must
 furnish -- by offering only paper copies.  Even when the records are
 maintained in electronic form and copies of large public-records bases
 are clearly of limited value in paper form.
   *Access to digital copies of digitally-maintained public records -- for no
 more than direct duplication costs -- needs to be explicitly and rigorously
 required in states' Public Records Acts.*

 COMPUTER-ASSISTED PERSONAL POLITICAL EMPOWERMENT

   Professional political campaign support companies often charge naive cam-
 paigners and candidates big bux for such lists and list processing.  In fact,
 computer-capable folks can generate 'em on their [robust] personal computer
 -- for their use and for use by underfunded candidates and causes (there's
 no such thing as an overfunded candidate or cause -- except those you
 oppose; sorta like good taxes and bad taxes).

 NEW TWIST:  COMMUNITY POWER BY FAXMODEM

   More and more folks can now receive messages by fax.  Increasingly, those
 who have personal computers also have fax'es.  Coupled with a fax-modem in
 the computer, this adds a powerful new tool for organizing fast community
 action -- often needed as self-serving bureaucrats and arrogant elected
 officials seek to ram through policies before the impacted public can defend
 themselves (a consistant pattern in my San Mateo County ... and elsewhere!).
   In the past year, my rural and mountain neighbors and I have begun
 organizing an increasingly broad and effective fax network.  With a
 fax-modem (an Interfax 24/96) plugged into the phone-port on my Mac, it's
 trivial to draft a notice and have it faxed to *lots* of folks who have
 expressed interest in these issues -- without ever having to touch hard-copy
 (much less re-feed it, over and over, through a manual fax).
   This supplements an additional wrinkle in community activism:  Many of the
 recipients have lowcost copiers at home.  Many of them have agreed to make
 copies of the notices as soon as the receive 'em, and pass 'em along to
 neighbors or post 'em on local community bulletin boards.

   This gets around the serious problems of weekly community newspapers being
 too slow and/or too unwilling to provocatively publicize impending
 politicians' plans.  **Really *neat* community action!**

 [Hope this wan't too boring or too long-winded.  Actually, there's *lots*
 more to say -- especially about how to design effective direct-distribution
 written materials.  But, that's more concerned with writing than computers.]

 ASIDE, RE "THE COMPUTER ELITE" & COMPUTER EGALITARIANISM

   Anyone capable of utilizing a computer can utilize it for significant
 personal political empowerment.  But, it *does* require that (a) they have
 access to a computer, and (b) they be competent at utilizing it.  Both of
 these entry barriers are non-trivial; the latter emphasizes the need for
 computer education -- it's for personal empowerment, just as is drivers'
 education and social studies.

   Folks who can't drive are considerably less empowered than those who can.
   Folks who can't use computers are considerably less enabled for acquiring
 and utilizing valuable information for astute decision-making and effective
 personal action, than those who can use computers.
   This is not an elitist view -- it is simply a statement of reality as I
 see it.

   These issues are part of why I feel that it is essential to teach kids
 -- all kids, rich and poor, "elite" and "slum" -- how to use computers.  To
 the extent that we know how to use a computer (or how to drive) we have the
 potential of greatly increased personal empowerment.  To the extent that we
 have that use-knowledge and can gain access to a computer (or a car, or the
 net, inaccessible to most folks), then we can implement that potential
 empowerment.

 Personal computers -- essentially defined, exclusively, as meaning computers
 that can be afforded by individual people -- provide access to information-
 processing power, for individuals, that was previously available only to
 corporations, government and the very wealthy.  (Nonetheless, multi-thousand
 dollar "personal" computer systems remain financially un-ownable by folks on
 very limited income -- though they can often gain access through schools,
 loaners, donors, complimentary online accounts, etc.  This is no different --
 nor more elitist, nor less egalitarian, than the fact that multi-thousand
 dollar cars are equally unavailable to folks on  very limited income.)

   The particular issue I am raising is that folks who know how to use
 computers, and have access to computers, can also have much more political
 power than most of them realize -- far in excess of folks who don't know
 how to use computers or don't choose to use 'em (regardless of how poor or
 wealthy they may be).

--jim

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                           **END OF CuD #2.08**
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