I watched the Obammercial on Univisión to see what good a job they were going to do in translating the thing. Well, I have to give them a B- in Spanish (and honestly, I really should be harsher but am giving them that for effort) and an A- in English.

But let me start with the actual task at hand.

I think Obama knocked it out of the park for fulfilling the first commandment in Marketing and Advertising : Thou shalt never mention your opponent when you're selling yourself.

The video was an iteration of the a documentary they showed at Denver's Invesco Stadium the day Obama delivered his acceptance speech. In between speakers they would show 2-3 minute clips about his life and his policies much like it was done tonight.

Just as he did in Denver, tonight we saw Davis Guggenheim weave Barack Obama's life with the life of the people he is looking to serve. The working mother with not enough food in the fridge. The elderly couple caught in the hell of chronic illness and disability and dead-end yet necessary job at the local Walmart. The latina teacher with the extra job. The factory worker teetering on the brink of welfare. Obama hit the economy, education and most importantly health care while weaving people's stories to his own vicissitudes and accomplishments.

Nevertheless there's one not so small detail that's going to raise hell for Obama : He says in the video that taxes will be reduced for people making  200K and under. Meanwhile we've been hearing all along, especially after the last debate and in reference to "Joe the Plumber", that the threshold was 250K.

Then we have he 2 big elephants in the room : Gay Marriage and Immigration. He spoke of neither. This threw me off because I thought that he would maybe have a different ad for the Spanish broadcasters. So to see the same ad airing and nothing mentioned about the raids, the wrongful incarceration of people was disappointing.

Overall though, the infomercial was a job well done in trying to make a connection between him and voters.

Yet they proceeded to transliterate instead of translating the video.

Oy.

Here's what I twittered :
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This is too awesome for words. David Alan Grier is coming out with a new show on Comedy Central, "Chocolate News". It doesn't look at all like a "Daily Show" for black people --which would have been cool yet annoying.

Anyhow, the marketing of his show has been incredibly bullish here in New York City and I imagine in most urban areas. Am glad, because he's really an amazing comedic actor.

Still, you would have though that Agence Française Presse or Getty Images would have read the friggin' text in the image. I mean, seriously!

Via Comedy Central Insider.

Allison and Nancy have a killer post over at TechPresident titled, "Twitter: An Antidote to Election Day Voting Problems?". It's brilliant and you have to read it top to bottom for the points it makes on : Empowering Self-Organized Volunteers, Sharing Patterns, Serving as Mobile Legal Aide, Smart Routing Around Resource Gaps and Guiding the Watchdogs.

I had joked about a week ago that it would behoove the United States to have Jimmy Carter  invite international election observers and have him to for our country what he does in every other nascent or 3rd World democracy. Yet it dawned on my we, the voters of the United States, can open the US electoral process to the world by using our cell phones and digital cameras.
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This was twittered this morning by the lovely Carmen Van Kerchove of the delicious Racialious. She found it at Macon D's blog "Stuff White People Do" under the post, "use a virtually innumerable array of euphemisms instead of the word 'white'".

It was first posted by Lady Zora, Chauncey DeVega, and Gordon Gartrelle at "We Are Respectable Negroes"in a post titled, Euphemisms for Naming White Folk which was later expanded in Euphemisms for naming white folk : And many said it could not be done, the 60 name barrier has been broken.

You have got to read all these great posts. Here's my favorites :
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"These words ... they have to applied to everybody or they mean nothing ... do you understand?"

Happy Constitution Day!

The LA Times reports that La Palin is being embargoed by the McCain campaign on account of the republicanos not believing it is in their best interest to have her speaking to the press.  In other words, they're afraid she's going to make a mistake as Todd Harris says in the video above; because she is not ready to give her opinion on anything a Vice-President could conceivably be involved as co-pilot of the President of the United States.

This is supposedly the woman who will be a heartbeat away from the presidency and who could most possibly succeed in office the 72 year-old John McCain. This is not just another GOP and John McCain strategic blunder. It is down right scary anybody would think this woman is ready to be POTUS.
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