I'm mostly a lurker who being Canadian has no skin in the game. But I have an interest in digital technology and cultural transformation. Indeed, I have taught a course on that, and had the pleasure of guest lecturing it in recently. I referenced, of all things, Newt Freaking Gingrich - his many references to Saul Alinsky gave me all the reason to integrate his 12 Rules For Radicals into the lecture. So, thanks Newt!
So, the recent explosion of interest in Operation Hilarity is of special interest to me.
To start, I think it's a great idea. All for mixing up the frothy insanity that is the 2012 GOP race, I figure.
But I sympathize with a lot of the detractors. There is an inherent danger in feeding a potentially unknown danger, especially in precarious times. Santorum is more fecal matter than lube, and he really needs to be kept far away from the levers of power. Enabling evil is always a dangerous idea, and in this case, a potentially very dangerous one.
I'm less concerned about the authenticity of democracy arguments. If state parties really believed only the faithful should vote, they could and do arrange this. Open primaries are open for all sorts of expression, from Operation Hilarity to Stephen Colbert's effort to Occupy Herman Cain. These anarchic efforts are effective at showing how ineffectual the established power structures are, especially in an era when people who have more money than God can just trump the whole process with a few well-placed SuperPAC ads.
But the strategy of Hilarity is all wrong. I'm all for this effort extending the Republican race until the corpse of Ronald Reagan is nominated, for lack of a better alternative.
But the best nominee out of this drawn out and increasingly sad process remains the undead Mitt Romney. As Josh Marshall pointed out today, there's something about Mitt wincing and limping towards the finish line - against, of all people, Mr. Google Problem - is just pathetic.
Do you want a freshly surging embodiment of sweater-vested fascism as your GOP nominee, or the guy who barely can beat him despite having more connections, money, time on the campaign trail, etc.?
Mitt Romney is that rich kid in school who tries to buy friends or the student council election and loses because he's just too much of a plastic douchebag. Until he proves otherwise, he's a loser with an ego problem.
If the Santorum surge continues, the only reasonable alternative in strategic voting is keeping Mitt's vainglorious hopes alive. This campaign might have already tipped in St. Frothiness direction. Unless there's evidence Rick Santorum might actually have trouble winning, don't vote for him. If you feel compelled to waste your vote in some anarchic rage, vote Ron Paul. That's what he's for.