Texas national TeaParty candidate does a AMA on redditt gets laughed off the internet.

[Ichingcarpenter]

There are a lot of funny things that happen on social media, but perhaps none so droll, tongue-in-cheek and even sometimes esoteric as you find daily on Reddit.


Yesterday, a Tea Party candidate by the name of Matt McCall who is hoping to primary the incumbent conservative Congressman Lamar Smith (TX-21) decided to do an AMA (Ask Me Anything) on Reddit with the title “I am (SOPA-Opponent) Matt McCall, I am Running against Lamar Smith in the Republican Primary in TX-21. AMA!”


While it would seem politically smart for you to introduce yourself as being an opponent of something most Reddit users hate, it would have also perhaps been smart for your campaign manager to research what they were about to get you into. People on Reddit tend to be pretty left-libertarian from my experiences and although they may not be be fans of SOPA (a bill his primary opponent introduced) or CISPA, they damn sure do not like fundamentalist Christians posing in libertarian clothing – which if you look at his website, it’s pretty obvious that he is. There are a few references to things a lot of Progressives, Liberals, Libertarians and even some conservatives despise on the page that states where he stands on the issues.


Redditt:
http://www.reddit.com/r/SubredditDrama/comments/1kq4mn/a_politician_does_an_ama_quickly_discovers_reddit/


link to story
http://www.forwardprogressives.com/texas-tea-party-candidate-for-congress-does-reddit-ama-brutal-hilarity-ensues/


wonkette laughs at it too;
http://wonkette.com/526213/wingnut-texas-congressional-candidate-tries-this-reddit-thing-gets-laughed-off-internet#more-526213

[OneGrassRoot]

1. I wonder how Rand Paul would be received?

I have a feeling he'd be a hero of sorts.

I actually really like reddit...well, the subreddits I've zeroed in on to call home there, that is. It's HUGE!!! The AMA's and even the front page are often funny and can be very enlightening.

I get the impression reddit's demographic is mainly male, in their 20's and 30's, and I definitely detect a very strong Rand Paul type of libertarian bent. Very strong. (I say Rand Paul type because, as I have said before, traditional libertarianism which focused on the Common Good, is very different from Rand Paul's brand of libertarianism.)

Thanks for the links. Off to read and no doubt have a good chuckle.

[Ichingcarpenter]

3. President Obama did one not long ago

it was pretty good and civil.

Other famous people have done them too.


They are double verified by the administration to make sure they are not fake.

[OneGrassRoot]

5. Yeah, I'm on reddit, so I try to pay attention to the AMAs...

I think that, most of the time, really brilliant questions are posed. It's a valid forum for a Q&A, imho, not just some social media outlet where silliness ensues as those not familiar may assume. I actually really like reddit.

[SecularMotion]

2. Here's a link to the original AMA thread

http://np.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/1koh5j/i_am_sopaopponent_matt_mccall_i_am_running/

[OneGrassRoot]

4. lololol!!!

I got sucked into the thread discussing the AMA and was cracking up.

Now I'm in the original thread (thanks), and....

The sad truth is that I could get lost in those reddit threads for hours, so I have to stay away. I think so many of those people are so damn clever and witty, and it doesn't hurt that I adore profanity and crassness.

Thanks.

[Buns_of_Fire]

7. Whew. Tough crowd tonight. nt

[SecularMotion]

6. Ron Paul is doing an AMA tomorrow at 4pm

and Cory Booker is on Friday at 11:30am.

http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/

edit: to add AMA link