99Airlines? Seriously?!?!

From today's in-box from MoveOn.org (yes, the espionage continues!):

Dear Moogie:

This is shaping up to be the dirtiest presidential election ever. And the most expensive, with pro-Romney super PACs and huge corporations spending like drunken sailors, thanks to Citizens United.¹ The sheer quantity of misleading ads will be stupefying.

But even if they buy the airwaves, they can't buy the skies. So we can "rise above" their dirty ads—literally—and fly messages from the 99% over dozens of Mitt Romney events. We already did it successfully when we hired a plane to fly over Romney's Liberty University graduation speech towing a banner that read: "GOP = HIGHER SCHOOL DEBT."²

We can't afford hundreds of millions of dollars of TV ads. But it turns out, if we all chip in a bit, we can afford to fly banners over Romney's head. All the time.

Call it 99airlines.

Here's the plan: if we can raise $150,000 today, we'll use the opportunity of high-dollar Romney fundraisers to fly a plane overhead towing a message that reminds voters how he represents his corporate and 1% donors.
It'll be fun—and it's sure to grab the media's attention. But most importantly, with Mitt leading in many polls, it's a way to let millions of voters who are concerned about the economy know whose side Mitt is really on. Will you chip in?

. . .

With 99airlines, we'll transform Mitt Romney's 1% fundraising tour into an airborne progressive message machine. If we hit our fundraising goal, we can secure enough plane banners so that at every Romney event, instead of looking at the podium, the reporters' eyes and cameras will be pointing up, on the lookout for our banners.

According to Gallup, only 1/3 of voters under 29 are registered to vote and say they'll definitely do so in November (far less than every other age group).³ That's enough to swing the election. So with your support, we'll also reach these voters by making 99airlines huge online—using Facebook and a Tumblr site, to post pictures of the best plane banners.

This summer, we're pulling out all the stops to win the fight against the Romney super PAC ad assault. The 99airlines planes—and the messages they carry—will transform Romney fundraisers into an opportunity to remind voters what he really stands for—corporations and the 1%.

There is so much wrong with this on so many levels.

First, I don't recall seeing any media coverage of a banner flying over the Liberty University graduation -- and I actually searched -- so the plan doesn't seem to be garnering the free media blitz it seeks.

Next, um, hiring planes to tow banners ain't exactly a 99%er activity.  The price tag to do that can get right on up there.  So, do you suppose there are some 1%ers picking up the tab for the planes?  I would be shocked to learn that!  Shocked, I tell you.

And, then there's that "reaching the under-29 vote" thing using Facebook and Tumblr and Twitter. Well, duh.  The Romney camp is already working Facebook (Obama probably is, too, but I just cannot force myself to "friend" him).  Unlike John McCain, Mitt apparently has learned how to operate social media.  And to hire folks who can make computers stand up and do tricks.

This campaign maneuver isn't as much fun as the Poetry Refrigerator Magnets, but then they're asking contributors to kick in only $5.00 instead of $6.00.  Fun must cost extra.

Finally, super PACs and corporations "spending like drunken sailors?"  Need I remind MoveOn of Reagan's aphorism about drunken sailors and spending? 



Like those tipsy sailors, those PACs and huge corporations (not to mention the SuperPACs on the left!) are spending their own money.  And probably having a lot more fun than those stuffy ol' MoveOn guys.