The 5th Congressional District Race from My Corner

A couple weeks back, the family and I checked out the St. Anthony Village VillageFest parade (How could we not?). Of course, the candidates for the 5th District were there – well…I shook hands with Ember Reichgott Junge (points for a cool sign and strong German name) and Mike Erlandson (points for Sabo endorsement). I don’t remember seeing Paul Ostrow or Keith Ellison in person (losing points), but their reps were there…I think.

Afterwards, reviewing their positions – read like more a race for who disliked Bush more. Listening to the MPR State Fair debate, they’re tripping over each other on who’s more progressive. At first glance, they all look very similar.

Here’s a quick comparison table highlighting their differences from what I gleaned in the MPR debate. Note, they all talk real fast, so some of the quoting might be off, and yea, most of it is “what I heard”.

Universal Healthcare:
Ellison: We need to stand up to the Healthcare “man” – that’s why we don’t have it yet.
Ember: The Healthcare industry controls the federal government – that’s why we haven’t had it yet.
Erlandson: Democrats need a financing mechanism for universal health care – that’s why we don’t have it yet.
Ostrow: Healthcare is a national issue, needs a national solution – that’s why we don’t have it yet.

Public Transit:
Ellison: We need to stand up to the oil and coal industries.
Ember: We need lots more light rail lines. It takes years for light rail to happen.
Erlandson: All public transit should be free. We can find creative ways to fund stadiums, we need to do the same for public transit.
Ostrow: Me too.

Foreign Policy:
Ellison: I supported the cease fire, before the cease fire was cool. “I’m for talking with people…even those you don’t agree with.”
Ember: The prerequisite of peace is disarmament.
Erlandson: Israel is the only democracy in that region – it has a right to defend itself.
Ostrow: Iraq is a war of lies. The US has no international credibility – we need to rebuild those relationships.

Crime & Safety:
Ellison: I’ve got more street cred than Mike Erlandson.
Ember: Early childhood education is the #1 way to prevent crime.
Erlandson: More education for 3 & 4 year olds. Invest in the neighborhoods and fund education. More cops on the streets.
Ostrow: Republican policies have gutted public safety. We should add serial numbers to bullet casings.

President George Bush:
Ellison: Impeach him – I’ll do it right now.
Ember: Investigate impeachment, Congress needs to get a backbone. Bush needs to be accountable.
Erlandson: Let’s not waste the next two years on impeachment, Let’s fix the financial problems caused by the Republicans. Bush can make a war abroad, but not a peace at home.
Ostrow: Congress needs to put a smackdown on Bush – across the board.

On Raising Federal Taxes…
Ellison: Federal taxes need to be re-appropriated.
Ember: Repeal federal tax breaks for most affluent.
Erlandson: Federal taxes need to be raised on most affluent.
Ostrow: Me too.

On Bringing the Troups Home
Ellison: “I’m the peace candidate.”
Ember: All troups out in 12 months.
Erlandson: Set a date to begin withdrawal, apologize to the rest of the world for Bush’s failed war.
Ostrow: Troops out now, we need an exit strategy.

Final Pitch
Ellison: Vote for me, I’m endorsed by the DFL, and all y’all can help me take down the “man”.
Ember: Vote for me, I don’t like Bush, and I’ve been in office for 18 years and I’m a woman.
Erlandson: Vote for me, I’m endorsed by Sabo and have worked in Washington with him.
Ostrow: Vote for me, I don’t like Bush.

For me, Ostrow and Ember lost this debate. The race is between Ellison and Erlandson. I like Erlandson’s jawline more and his endorsement by Sabo. Ellison seems a little feisty. At this point, I can’t tell what Ellison’s Talk vs. Walk ratio is, so I’m still sticking with Erlandson.

For a longer, even more in-depth and snarky analysis, talk to Mr. Sponge.

Is Competition Simply Lack of Articulation?

“The main idea is that whatever market you are in, whether it’s big or not you should be number one and should do whatever it takes to get there.” – Aneil Weber

I’ll extend this and say, the only way to guarantee success is to pursue an a single niche to its extreme – be the only one serving a specific market in a specific way. I touched on this notion my One as the Ideal Podcast Audience Size thinking a while back.

From that perspective, there really is very little competition.

Wal-Mart and Target are both big box retailers, but the chances of anyone shopping at both are pretty slim. Each has their own identity and brand – those brands are similar only at the most cursory level.

Competition makes for easy press, but I think it detracts from serving customers.

Make Yourself at Home – The Internet is a Place

“…the place where any telephone call takes place” – William Gibson

This morning’s Citizen’s League conversation reminded me how not everyone considers this website a location. In the same way a park or a coffee shop is a location – a place where people meet for conversation. I’ve long seen blogs as back porches and think of the First Crack Podcast as a coffee shop (with free wifi) where you quietly eavesdrop on conversations for 20 minutes at a time.

The difference is one of synchronization. You’re reading this post minutes, hours, or years after I’ve written it. There’s a decent chance you can still comment (in some way) whenever this is. Dave Slusher calls it the Space Telephone. Conversations at the coffee shop down the block don’t work like that – we need to be near each other in both time and space. Making that much more difficult to accomplish. Especially when much prep work can be accomplished through the space phone.

This asynchrony is advantageous – biasing long-term discussion over short-term sound-bites. Through in the bit that hyperlinks are inherently a social cue and you’ve got an ecosystem to extend a “real” community electronically.

Bonus: Steve Borsch moblogged the event.


More Photos Here

Griff Wigley wrote up the event. Griff’s point is a good one – we need more stories to share, more dramatic examples of how easy-to-use internet tools can enable groups to make civic change.

Surly’s Coffee Bender at the Acadia – Best of Both Worlds

Last night, I popped by the Acadia Cafe to update their podcast settings – it’s been moved to AcadiaCast.com. While testing everything out, Ted surprised me with a pint of Surly Brewing’s new Coffee Bender.

It’s a fantastic beer, one that Omar hinted at during our podcast. The most complex of all Surly’s beers – in addition to their signature hoppiness, and Bender’s oatmeal, the coffee adds a chocolate finish and a contemplative nature to the pint.

Tim Coyne’s Best Work is Unkempt

Not that I’ve listened to any of the standard fare from the The Hollywood Podcast, but the Unkempt series is superb. Superb.

This series is what podcasting is made for. These stories couldn’t be told in any other form. These stories are more intimate and more entertaining than any of the ‘Your Name Here Show’ podcasts.

Be warned, these stories are not for the easily offended (why they haven’t been added to the Podcast Picks list.)

Thanks Tim – and good luck on the next 2 months.