Letters to the Editor
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That's the best they could do?
Maybe it's just me, but that didn't work at all. The notion that Obama is some kind of post-political figure is simply not credible. And linking him to Reagan is just annoying.
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How underwhelming
that is all
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Lukewarm
The speaker is certainly credible, but he doesn't really cite any concrete issues or ideas besides a watered-down notion of "togetherness."
I felt there were several much stronger films ... especially the Lincoln one, which has the kind of emotional immediacy and pull that this ad aims for, without being so blunt.
In any case, won't target audience for this ad likely recoil with horror when they see that it's been sponsored by MoveOn?
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Eh.
I can see this as one in a suite of ads. But as one that stands out enough to merit a prize?
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Everybody's a critic
You have to think about context, people. This ad wasn't designed to be seen at the end of an article about it winning a pro-Obama ad contest. It was designed to be played on CNN. If you watch it cold, it looks like it's going to be a McCain ad, until he says he's voting for Obama. That's hugely effective.
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What everyone else said...
It's a a pedestrian ad, and as far as convincing any Republican who sees it, "sponsored by MoveOn.org" may as well be "sponsored by George Soros." Wait, I just looked on Wikipedia and learned it is funded in part by George Soros. Sigh.
I can respect MoveOn.org, but I don't think they understand the mentality of the people they are trying to reach.
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It is not meant to appeal to everyone
This ad is meant to appeal to those who are sick of the Republicans but still somehow think Obama not patriotic. You know, those who actually think that wearing a flag pin matters.
The rest of us already are voting for the Democratic candidate. We already were. Always have. And, unless something changes, always will.
My first vote for President was in 1972. I have never voted for a Republican for President. So, this ad was not for me, but for my relatives who voted for Reagan and have been voting for Republicans ever since.
They are just now realizing they have been screwed. This year, they are actually voting for the Democratic candidate. Many of them really like Obama. Just like the guy in the ad.
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that's it?
That's the best we could do? I can't even criticize it because there is nothing to parse. The speaker says we need someone strong who can bring dems and repubs together. That's it.
Really? The ad is only shocking in its total lack of content. It is a waste of money.
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Bipartisanship - Humbug!
It's great that people who consider themselves Republican or have voted Republican are willing to give a Democratic candidate their support. However, they need to do more than that. Voters need to realize that today's GOP does not represent their interests and that the current state of the country and the world are a result of Republican successes and not their mistakes.
I don't want to hear about a candidate willing to work with Republicans. The GOP will oppose any action significant enough to fix the messes they've made while in power. Any Democratic administration that compromises with Republicans will be mediocre at best. At worst the government will just be in a holding pattern while this country, the lives of its citizens, and the state of the world all go downhill.
In my opinion the best legislation that came out of the Clinton administration was during the the short period in 1993-1994 when Democrats controlled the House,Senate, and White House.
We need a President who is willing to stand up to the Republicans and roll over them if necessary. We don't need to run every part of the Government in a partisan manner to the often illegal extent that the Republicans have but Democrats need to be less compromising on the laws that are passed if we gain a good size majority.
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It's one of two ads that I would have chosen
The fifteen or so ads on MoveOn.org that were posted for viewer ratings were largely so over-the-top with sugary-feel good imagery and music that I felt they were NOT effective. The panelists did a good job of choosing an ad that actually targeted a specific group.
Some of the other ads were really ridiculous. The one with little jingle bells about HOPE and the other one with people forming a human OBAMA in, of all places, NYC, was laughable, only because if MoveOn had aired it, the whole thing would have been viewed as precisely some far out, feel-good, post-hippie, ad that would have been lost on most Americans. They could have as well aired an ad with Wiccans beating drums in the forest under a full moon, worshiping a tree goddess. Not that I don't love Wiccans, but really, some liberals in big cities have no idea what it's like in the hinterlands in the interior.
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Effective
Out here in the "heartland", it will be effective.
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@ wysiwyg
AMEN!
I don't want Obama to make nice with the Republicans. I want him to crush the little cockroaches and have them run back to Tom Delay for protection. Oops, I forgot, he's supposed to be bug exterminator.
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underwhelming to say the least
This is the best they can do? I thought they were looking for something innovative. If all they were looking for was a republican serviceman to say he was voting for Obama they could have skipped the "contest" and hit the street with a camcorder. This highlights the problems that I have with MoveOn and their tactics in general. Shortsighted and myopic.
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Oh well
I liked it.
Maybe they can find more of these military people and string them together for a more effective ad. A veteran military man not voting for McCain. Says a lot in a short period of time.
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I'm General Betrayus..
and I approve this message. I don't really dig the tinny snare drum but what the hell, if it can convince one Republican to vote for Obama then it did something good.
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Does This Say Something About MoveOn, Obama, His Supporters or All of the Above?
I remember when MoveOn did the "Bush in 30 Seconds" contest and I recall genuinely clever advertising. The ad that eventually won that contest was, if I recall correctly, a bunch of kids working horrible, soul-sucking jobs and discussing Bush's mismanagement of the country. This ad, little more than a "talking head" who speaks with clear conviction, doesn't sum up Barack Obama so much as offer one man's testimonial about why his is voting for the man. I don't want to say the ad isn't good, but I do want to say that it is underwhelming.
I wonder if this ad conveys the unintended message that MoveOn isn't able to generate as much heat as it once did. The "Bush in 30 Seconds" contest was heated, very competitive and there were a lot of people who had interesting things to say. Maybe it says something about Obama's supporters (a number which includes me) and our inability to see much beyond our hardcore adoration of the man. Maybe it says something about Obama himself but I am having trouble figuring out what it is beyond "He is good." and, maybe "He plays well with others."
I appreciate what some have said regarding the target of this ad, but I just have a hard time seeing anyone moved by this commercial. Obama's supporters and most Dems are already going to vote for him but is THIS really going to sway people in the middle or get the military to vote for him? I'm not saying they can't be swayed or that they won't end up voting for him, but I just don't see how this particular ad figures in the calculus of having any kind of effect one way or another.