Bad Idea Full of Bad Ideas
May. 26th, 2010 03:23 pmSo, the Republican Party, in an attempt to further harness the power of ranting mobs popular discontent, have started a website designed to ‘increase the dialogue between Americans and their Congress’. You can submit your brilliant ideas on what Congress should do, vote on other people’s brilliant ideas, and, um, earn badges. Because everything needs achievement points, apparently.
Now, I’m not going to mock this idea too hard, because it’s theoretically got potential. Except, for, well, the whole ‘anonymous people on the internet’ factor.
Highlights from the ideas currently posted:
- ‘There ought to be a Constitutional amendment banning cannibalism in every state except Kentucky.’
- ‘Enough is enough! Let law-abiding minors carry handguns to promote personal responsibility.’
- ‘Do ‘The Running Man’, but with unemployed instead of criminals’
Of course, I’m assuming these are all trolls – the true believers are the people posting ideas that are half a page of unpunctuated text that they then submit three or four times. I’m not sure if the racists are beating out the Marijuana advocates, but the Birthers will really have to lift their game to catch up with either of them.
How, exactly, did this website get this far along without someone realising it would need some sort of moderation? And how long before it gets shut down and quietly forgotten about?
One final bit of wisdom, submitted by some unknown person:
- ‘someone told me scientists created artificial life in a lab test tube last week. only God can create artificial animals! why should science be allowed to play god? god made mice and animals.’
Either ‘Only God can create artificial animals!’ or ‘god made mice and animals’ need to become memes, stat.
Now, I’m not going to mock this idea too hard, because it’s theoretically got potential. Except, for, well, the whole ‘anonymous people on the internet’ factor.
Highlights from the ideas currently posted:
- ‘There ought to be a Constitutional amendment banning cannibalism in every state except Kentucky.’
- ‘Enough is enough! Let law-abiding minors carry handguns to promote personal responsibility.’
- ‘Do ‘The Running Man’, but with unemployed instead of criminals’
Of course, I’m assuming these are all trolls – the true believers are the people posting ideas that are half a page of unpunctuated text that they then submit three or four times. I’m not sure if the racists are beating out the Marijuana advocates, but the Birthers will really have to lift their game to catch up with either of them.
How, exactly, did this website get this far along without someone realising it would need some sort of moderation? And how long before it gets shut down and quietly forgotten about?
One final bit of wisdom, submitted by some unknown person:
- ‘someone told me scientists created artificial life in a lab test tube last week. only God can create artificial animals! why should science be allowed to play god? god made mice and animals.’
Either ‘Only God can create artificial animals!’ or ‘god made mice and animals’ need to become memes, stat.