Thackaberry gets an opponent in HD17
T.A. Barnhart
Dan Thackaberry, Democratic Party nominee for the now-open House District 17 seat, has an opponent. Former state representative Fred Girod was selected by Linn and Marion County Rs to replace incumbent Jeff Kropf in the November election.
Girod, a Lyons dentist, would be a Minnisbot of the first order. He has opposed universal health care in the past and advocated for commercial interests. He served in the Legislature in early 90s, adding support to the neo-con religionists who were in the process of attacking Oregon's consensus-based democracy.
While Thackaberry gains a jump on Girod due to Kropf's last-minute bail-out, the district has voted for Rs for years. Thackaberry is a rural Oregon Democrat and has won elections; his experience as a rancher and local official should give him a great shot at taking this seat back for the Dems. To donate or volunteer, visit his website at FarmerDan.org.
Interestingly, there appears to be grounds for divisiveness among HD17 Republicans. Accordng to the August 9th Stayton Mail:
Marion County Commissioner Sam Brentano [stated]: "I have to start with experience. Girod has been there before and is someone with an interest in Marion County. I don't like us to be tied up with Linn County. I think we'll get lost in the shuffle."
We can only hope these attitudes are shared by Rs throughout the district.
(my Chisholmesque disclaimer: i provide Dan's web services)
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2:18 p.m.
Aug 14, '06
adding support to the neo-con religionists who were in the process of attacking Oregon's consensus-based democracy.
What does this mean?
2:29 p.m.
Aug 14, '06
FWIW, I think most Republicans in Oregon are of the regular plain ol' conservative sort. Not neo-cons.
As for "neo-con religionists", I'm pretty sure the whole point of the neo-cons was that they weren't basing their worldview on evangelical or fundamentalist Christianity.
Folks who like to toss around "neocon" as a synonym for "right-winger" (and we have many here at BlueOregon) might do well to learn what it really means.
3:16 p.m.
Aug 14, '06
i wish i had a better history of the Leg in the 90s. i don't remember a lot of the names & dates, but i do remember that the neocons who dominated much of the Leg's non-work were fundamentalist christianists. there were those who didn't care much about religion (Larry Campbell, as i was reminded by what little successful googling i was able to do on Girod.
the people who've been destroying democracy in Oregon for nearly 20 years are neocons for the most part. i guess i define the term more broadly than does Wikipedia. part of my definition, a bit baised perhaps, is "evil selfish democracy-hating thieving elitist bastards" but i'm thinking that might be construed as overly harsh? (anybody got the full text of Mark Maron's definition?)
bottom-line: we need to get Dan Thackaberry elected to HD17. he's one of the good guys, and Girod's just another gop hack.
3:39 p.m.
Aug 14, '06
Sheesh, t.a. did you get up on the wrong side of the bed this morning? Did you run into a big ol' yellow jacket nest? Low blood sugar? Forget to eat your Wheaties? Bitter, bitter.
Aug 14, '06
evil selfish democracy-hating thieving elitist bastards
sounds about right to me. I'd add "me-first, the planet and other species be damned, cut down as many trees as possible, Jesus told me what to do..." and on and on. They will not be missed.
Go Thackaberry!
4:04 p.m.
Aug 14, '06
TA:
The real NeoCons are self labeled. They are a small group of (mostly) exTrotskyites who adhere to the teachings of Leo Strauss. They are almost all social liberals, many are gay, most are agnostic or atheist, and the only time they even reference religion is to use it as a weapon against us.
To me, their defining characteristic is their three part breakdown of social structure:
The Wise or The Enlightened (NeoCons) have the duty and reponsibility to lie to the Warriors (civilian and military leadership) and the Masses (us), in order to promote what They (The NeoCons again) know is best for us.
The Oregon Bulls-In-The-China-Shop don't even rise close to that level of sophistication. I think that most of our homegrown Righties (Wayne Scott, Karen Minnis et.al.) are in the "masses" category and actually believe the crap that they peddle. There are exceptions of course, like Ted Feriolli and Dick Cheney, who while not disciples of the NeoCon Death Cult, see the usefulness of the alliance.
Aug 14, '06
How important is good PR to win HD17 for Democrats? •StatesmanJournal.com has a 250px wide head shot of Kropf in its story about the new R candidate. •Only 11 words about Thackaberry. •Dan not really mentioned in Sound Off comments. •6 previous comments to this post not really 'bout Dan's positions, strategies, pluses, etc. • Today's Democrat-Herald web edition has no mention of Dan Thackaberry.
Who is farmerdan? Is "farmerdan" a good domain name/email address for PR? Is "farmerdan" going to connect well with "Dan Thackaberry" on the ballot?
Why not use Dan Thackaberry? Why not say Dan Thackaberry is a farmer? What has he done for Farm Bureau – County? State? Nationally? Why not write Dan Thackaberry is a skilled politician? What are his skills as a legislator? Why not publish on http://DanThackaberry.com, Dan Thackaberry is skilled fiscal planner? Why not list his accomplishments. Why not put in Oregon House Democrats blog a strong post by Dan Thackaberry about his environmental positions (see Walden Pond)(What is Walden Pond?)?
Why not do a good PR campaign? Is some of this type of PR what a small-scale political PR campaign might do using netroots, guerilla PR strategies, and a personal style?
4:52 p.m.
Aug 14, '06
"evil selfish democracy-hating thieving elitist bastards"
Nope, that's just a regular plain ol' conservative. Paleoconservative if you must have a modifier with your Wheaties.
4:55 p.m.
Aug 14, '06
And Chris... if you really want to help elect Farmer Dan Thackaberry, head on down to the campaign office, pick up a walk sheet, and hit some doors. Alternately, invite a bunch of friends over to your house , feed 'em a little snack, and ask 'em to write checks for the campaign.
I think you've emailed me (and a gazillion others) the same thing in your post about a half-dozen times in the last two weeks.
Stop complaining and get to work.
Aug 14, '06
TA...
Sorry, don't see well, don't drive, not able to walk well, but I can see on this big screen computer. BTW my informal survey of patients, health care workers in Lebanon's dialysis center, even those who live in Lebanon, say "Who is Dan Thackaberry?" Some of them may vote.
Did you choose farmerdan.org?
Why not a good domain name?
It's simple, cheap to correct this campaign error.
Aug 14, '06
Chris I like that Dan Thackaberry is a man of the people. I like that he has a website domain name that is different and speaks to who and what he is and where his values come from. We need more farmers in the Legislature and less laywers, accountants and dentists. I think "Good food" when I think of Dan and I think "drills and pain" when I think of his opponant. Too bad that Girod will not host his domain at Griodbigneedlesandpaindrill.com but maybe you should email the 100 people you keep pestering about how Girod should. Truth in advertising after all.
A quick google of Dan Thackaberry brings up in first postion Dan Thackaberry for HD 17, Linn and Marion Counties, Oregon. As a second-generation Oregonian working the family farm in Lebanon, Oregon, ... www.farmerdan.org/ - 4k - Cached - Similar pages
We have seen Dan in almost all the parades in the District handing out fliers with his farmerdan.org website. All internet roads lead to Dan at www.farmerdan.org Something this novel and fun is hardly a campaign error.
If you wrote to the Statesman-Journal about Dan's skills as a legislator, his skills as a fiscal planner, his outstanding enviromental record as shown in Walden Pond land use case then there would be 200 more words to add to the eleven they already used. Chris use your computer to make a real difference..they make terrific paper weights.
10:39 p.m.
Aug 14, '06
Dan's a real farmer, ok yes a rancher, but he's the real deal. Kropf is a pretend farmer, apparently tries to play it up but he is anything but. the difference between the two is both a slap at Kropf's phoniness and an affirmation of who Dan is. even with Lars Jr quitting the race, we still want to emphasize Dan's rural Oregon roots and the fact that he makes his living off the land.
we also bought danthackaberry.com, org & net. they all point to farmerdan. website names have to be memorable. when you're at the door talking to people who don't even know you, which name are they more likely to remember? "thackaberry" (which is fun to say but too many sylables for the American tv-watching public) or "Farmer Dan"? few candidates have any kind of name recognition; i've walked 3 different house districts, and the majority of people have no idea who the incumbent or challenger is. in those cases, gimmicky serves a purpose. "Farmer Dan" says a hell of a lot more than "Dan Thackaberry".
believe it or not, a few other folks have a clue. i'm no Kari Chisholm, but i make sites that work, that reflect their purpose, and do not violate the puke-at-first-site rule (as in, don't make them puke). i need my own camera so i can get the pictures i want, but otherwise, i think it's a good site. and i know we made the right choice with the main domain name, and then the "pointing" names.
and the simple fact of the matter is, Dan's not been on the net before, so any website with his name would go to the top of google. as has farmerdan.org. followed by the FuturePAC site, DPO and ActBlue. no matter what, you get good google out of his name. (and if you google "farmer dan" he shows up on the first screen. again, yay.)
11:05 p.m.
Aug 14, '06
Chris, your complaints are silly. It's perfectly OK to have a domain name that a) communicates message, and b) avoids a long and possibly hard-to-spell last name.
You may not be able to go canvassing, so write a check.
Aug 15, '06
Sorry to offend.
Joe L. (D. Conn.) lost because he did not give netroots enough credit.
Dan Thackaberry will be in his email address and website if Dan gets elected. Sincerely hope he is elected.
The R's outnumber the D's in HD17. Dan's mayor campaign sign was on our front lawn, but he lost 2 to 1 to an R. That was in urban Lebanon.
Why not use every tool, netroots tools, and traditional campaign tools and use them all to the best of your ability.
Web site marketing and usability is important. Why not do it well. Karl Rowe and his folks have and are continuing to do so.
Girod is a health care professional, a developer, a Harvard degreed economist, and an ex-state legislator who also ran for Congress.
It is great Dan is a man of the land. More farmer-legislators would be great. But Karl Rowe has a working plan that has thumped D's.
D's need to get on the tall hill and yell their positions loudly. Yell on the web site, in the press, as well as in the parades. Dan's "In the News" page has no news articles.
But then if this is all just bunk, then SPAM it. Don't keep responding to me.
But why not put details about Walden Pond and Dan's spearheading on the web site? (Google "Walden Pond" has Thoreau attached. Not Thackaberry and the "Walden Pond Project".)(It's not on City of Lebanon web site.)
Still think Dan's web site and netroots campaign could be much better with a little work and editing.
Don't we want people to know Dan Thackaberry? If farmerdan.org is such a great name, then let it be one of the pointers to danthackaberry.com. "Dan Thackaberry" is the ballot name.
Aug 15, '06
Chris, contact Dan and offer to help. I think you have some great ideas. Start implementing them :) ie, write the pieces you think need to be written.
Aug 15, '06
I see the Salem Statesman-Journal story written by Peter Wong on "in the news page on farmerdan.org." It might be easier for people if it opened to text on that page rather then a click to text. But still it is there.
7:59 p.m.
Aug 15, '06
zilla, that's because there is only one news story so far. that's an index/archive page; in time there'll be multiple news story referenced from there.
and yes, we need to get Dan in the news more. maybe he should go patrol the Canadian border! lord knows we're under seige from the Great White North.
Aug 16, '06
Thanks spicey, thanks for comments. Have made such suggestions to Dan and campaign.
zilla is right. "Democratic farmer seeks Kropf's seat" is SJ's headline. But it's Dan's site...
Why not rewrite the nut graf or do a new headline featuring Dan? Thackaberry, HD17 Democrat, says, "I have rural roots but can work in an urban setting for my -constituents" - Put it on a multicolumn, NYT style, front page, - use headline fonts - use RSS style headlines & nut grafs to hook surfers - put 'head shot' photos of Dan, photos in city council, etc. - use good photo captions - keep updating the front page - bring back surfers, voters, & search spiders.
New Subj: Are netroots & candidate web pages really important? HD11 Phil Barnhart's web site appears last update 2003/2004. If you're elected, netroots/internet presence NLI? (No Longer Important)
BTW Kris Kristofferson (my pseudo-namesake) used his looong name to advantage. Dan Thackaberry should be web site URL, email address and Dan's email address should use it as -- [email protected] or [email protected].
Why not get on a hilltop and yell, "I'm going to win"? from DH article http://www.democratherald.com/articles/2006/08/15/news/local/tueloc09.txt