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Me Too!
I agree with Atrios and Tom Tomorrow that more people should be inviting me to hot A-list convention parties. I also feel that since I'm (a) a blogger, (b) going to the convention, (c) going to be blogging from the convention that I should get mentioned in more of these articles popping up everywhere about bloggers at the convention, even though I'm not technically going as a blogger, but rather as an American Prospect writer. The lines, they blur! More importantly -- invite me to cool parties. (Also -- is there anything convention-related the people, you know, want to read about? I don't totally get what's supposed to be interesting about a convention so I'm happy to take requests.)
July 21, 2004 | Permalink
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» Boston Parties from TalkLeft: The Politics of Crime
Atrios and Tom Tomorrow will be in Boston for the Democratic Convention and would like to be invited to some "truly excellent parties." Update: Matt Yglesias wants party invitations too.... [Read More]
Tracked on Jul 22, 2004 1:44:04 AM
Comments
They're very conventional affairs, actually.
Posted by: praktike | Jul 21, 2004 9:16:11 AM
Things to write about:
1. Things delegates wished the party leaders talked more about (Sudan, Iran, etc.)
2. What the average delegate is like?
3. Comfort level on the floor?
4. Excitement for various people, is there anybody who was surprisingly well received?
Posted by: Joel W | Jul 21, 2004 9:16:25 AM
A request for you at the convention. Can you find something, anything at all, that would be a positive inducement to vote for John Kerry? I use the word "positive" in opposition to the negative one of his not being George Bush. As a foreigner I don't have either the vote or a massive amount of interest in the contest, but I haven't been able to find, anywhere, someone pointing out a cause, action or policy which would be a positive reason for someone to vote for JK. I can understand (although perhaps not agree with) the anyone but Bush crowd, but can you identify for me something positive?
Posted by: Tim Worstall | Jul 21, 2004 9:18:31 AM
Tim, read this, smile, and know you're making the Right Choice.
Posted by: praktike | Jul 21, 2004 9:27:12 AM
Do delegates make reservations for prostitutes or do they just meet them at the parties? Where is the best place to meet them? Are they all Democratic?
Posted by: LowLife | Jul 21, 2004 9:58:50 AM
Drugs, of course!
Posted by: Kriston | Jul 21, 2004 10:00:55 AM
Prostitutes, like conservative bloggers, actually tend to be Libertarians. But I repeat myself.
Posted by: JP | Jul 21, 2004 10:10:41 AM
Isn't this why the "real" news media started sucking so much? I mean really, we all want to be invited to the cool parties and once we start going...we wouldn't want to go and do something silly that would cause those invites to dry up, now would we?
Posted by: mike | Jul 21, 2004 10:16:01 AM
How about doing some historical research, and explaining to us why conventions still had a real role in deciding candidates as recently as the early 1950s, but then became nothing but empty showcases for a choice made during the primaries.
I'm sure most of the readers here already know some of the reasons for why that happened. But it would be interesting to see both Matt's take on the change, and the readers' take on it. Why did it happen? Is it a positive change, negative, or mixed?
Posted by: S. Anderson | Jul 21, 2004 10:32:28 AM
Let us know what Wonkette is really like!
Posted by: Hedley Lamarr | Jul 21, 2004 10:59:38 AM
You takin' self-promotion / pity lessons from Alterman?
Please don't be that guy...
Posted by: Rich | Jul 21, 2004 11:15:27 AM
word, m-yg. you're one of a handful who really breathe life into this place. This place being the internet. Why aren't you on Air America, anyway? -a friend.
Posted by: friend | Jul 21, 2004 11:17:11 AM
Hell, the whole convention is a party. And a deserved one, a little break between the faithful drudges stuffing envelopes and making phone calls for the primaries and doing the same with longer hours and more stress for the general.
I contribute a few bucks and votes. These are the people that make the Party, and I do not begrudge them their good time. Enjoy.
My Congressman, Martin Frost, will not be attending, and it appears most of the Texas Congressmen aren't going. Don't know what that's about yet.
Posted by: bob mcmanus | Jul 21, 2004 11:21:39 AM
Go read Norman Mailer's Miami and the Siege of Chicago, about the 1968 conventions. That should give you enough ideas of what to blog about....
Posted by: howard | Jul 21, 2004 11:22:20 AM
S.Anderson: What about the 1980 GOP convention in Detroit? Reagan and Ford were still negotiating for a "co-presidency" on Wed. evening, and then Reagan picked GHWB at the last minute.
Posted by: next big thing | Jul 21, 2004 12:11:30 PM
Coventions aren't really supposed to be interesting in and of themselves so much as a good chance to network, eat well, and develop professionally. So if you can find a way to combine all three, you're set.
Posted by: Wrye | Jul 21, 2004 12:17:49 PM
Try to avoid scandal. I've been laboring diligently for a couple of years now trying to bring the blog world to respectability, and I would be crushed to see my efforts destroyed by the acts of single irresponsible recent Ivy graduate.
On the other hand, if you could manage to hook up with an A list starlet working for the Dems, that would take some of the loser stigma off wonks.... the modern world is hard to read sometimes.
Posted by: Zizka | Jul 21, 2004 12:33:12 PM
I heartily agree. I'll be there with the Gadflyer folks and no one's invited me to anything either. However, since I live in Boston myself, perhaps we should organize our own blogger a-list bash? I for one would love to see Atrios, Tom Tomorrow, Matt, Kos, Tom Schaller and Paul Waldman, along with all the other bloggers, around the table having a good time.
Perhaps instead of sitting back and waiting for the invites we should organize something ourselves? After all, the reporters are all interested in bloggers and our party will be come the A list party...right?
Posted by: tyelperion | Jul 21, 2004 12:49:49 PM
I would be curious to see how many bloggers are also fun, interesting conversationalists in person. The ability to copiously type out political stuff on your computer may not always correlate with social skills...
Posted by: next big thing | Jul 21, 2004 1:44:31 PM
You're hereby invited to Blogorama next Thursday. All the happenin' DC area bloggers (except Sully and Marshall) will be there.
Posted by: James Joyner | Jul 21, 2004 4:26:30 PM
I think that Natalie Portman, for example, is working for the Dems.
Posted by: Zizka | Jul 21, 2004 6:58:58 PM
My Question is why are hats & t-shirts so expensive?
I'm waiting for mine to get here. 2 hats & 1 t-shirt was like 58 bucks to my door. that's a lot of money to advertise for someone
:)=
Posted by: eeff | Jul 21, 2004 10:37:00 PM
On Sunday night the College Democrats are holding a big party at the Avalon Club. I don't know if you're into that sort of thing, but it might be more fun than the parties filled with 50 year old women and unionists. Also, the Clintons, Jon Stewart, Jerry Springer, Al Sharpton, and some others are supposed to come. I'm not sure what they'll say to a bunch of drunk twenty year olds, but whatever. If you want to come, you could probably figure out a way to get in. You're supposed to go to some kind of campaign training on Saturday to be allowed in, but I'm sure you could get around that.
Posted by: Mitch | Jul 21, 2004 11:13:43 PM
Hundreds of leading Democrats are gathered together in one city, mobilized for an election to determine president, 1/3 of the senate and all the house.
Talk to delegates. Is their congress(wo)man D or R? If it's an R, is the D running a competitive race? How are they getting the message out and to whom? How are they coordinating with the statewide races and Kerry? How've they done in voter registration and what's their turnout strategy? And what's the vote count technology?
Leave the celebrities to the vacuous Nagourneys. I want to hear from the county chairmen. Tip O'Neill overstated it, but only a bit, when he said "all politics are local." Some of them will have great stories.
Posted by: social democrat | Jul 22, 2004 12:26:02 AM
Yeah, when I think about it, hitting on Portman would be shallow.
Posted by: Zizka | Jul 22, 2004 12:38:22 AM
