You may have noticed I was off enjoying my vacation the past week and a half. I rode my motorcycle throughout WNC and paddled a creek boat in the Nantahala, Tuckasegee, Chattooga, and Green rivers. The water was cold but I only took two swims. I nearly navigated the Nantahala Falls but ultimately took a swim.
The South Carolina red light bill is closer to passage than ever. If bikers will come together and work out differences in the language we can all avoid four point tickets because of defective left turn lights on multiple lane highways among other locations with signal loops that fail to detect motorcycles. Currently daily riders such as myself are forced to wait long periods of time and ultimately run the red lights all the while dreading a possible nasty ticket and insurance hike. Let's get together and fix the problem SCDOT won't!
Please contact members of the Senate Transportation Committee and urge prompt passage of S111.
http://www.scstatehouse.net/html-pages/senatecommlst.html#tra
FF
1) Motorcycle task force won't recommend mandatory helmets
2) SC State Law Prohibits Real ID Compliance, Governor Says
3) Lex. County GOP chair to oppose Knotts
4) SC Motorcyclists unite to fight for awareness
5) GOP race gets nasty with claims of illegal workers, trespassing
6) Training, awareness has more effect on fatality rates than helmet laws, some say
7) Missouri's death rate among highest in US despite helmet law
8) Techies are changing political activism
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1) Motorcycle task force won't recommend mandatory helmets
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http://greenvilleonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080328/NEWS/80328055/1001/NEWS01
Motorcycle task force won't recommend mandatory helmets
Draft report, which will be finalized in June, will urge licenses for riders
By Nan Lundeen
STAFF WRITER
A statewide motorcycle safety task force plans to recommend that the law require bikers have a license, not only a permit, but won’t recommend a mandatory helmet law.
It also plans to recommend that the state adopt a comprehensive motorcycle safety program to educate the public -- both bikers and other drivers on safety issues.
Disagreement erupted during a meeting today on even including the word “helmet” in its recommendations.
“That word ‘helmet’ will guarantee that nothing will be done,” said task force member Matt Vacher Jr.
Maj. B.S. McDonald of the state Highway Patrol, said, “I hate to see one word take away from the 16-17 months of work.”
The task force has met since November 2006 to address the increase in motorcycle riders’ deaths and injuries. In 2007, according to preliminary state statistics, South Carolina set a new record of motorcyclist fatalities at 122.
The group appeared to reach consensus that the word “helmet” could be included in recommendations if it weren’t singled out as the only protective device the task force included in its final draft.
Other devices could be goggles and proper footwear, for instance.
Frankie Nelson, an officer in ABATE, A Brotherhood Against Totalitarian Enactments, said the organization feels it’s up to adults to choose whether to wear a helmet.
“It should not be a law issue, it should be a personal issue,” she said.
Included in the draft document is a statement that even though a motorcycle safety assessment team recommended a universal helmet law, the task force couldn’t come to consensus on that issue.
Riders under age 21 are required to wear helmets and eye protection.
The task force plans to recommend South Carolina require a motorcycle operator to eventually get a license. Now they are allowed to keep renewing a permit. “The legislation should limit the availability of renewal for motorcycle permits and require proof of completion of an authorized rider education course in addition to the passing of the skills test for receipt of the motorcycle operator’s endorsement,” the draft document reads.
Upon finalization of the document, which probably will change in the interim, it will go to the head of the state Public Safety Department.
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2) SC State Law Prohibits Real ID Compliance, Governor Says
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http://www.foxcarolina.com/news/15749325/detail.html
State Law Prohibits Real ID Compliance, Governor Says
Sanford: I Must Uphold Law
POSTED: 8:45 am EDT March 31, 2008
UPDATED: 11:53 am EDT March 31, 2008
COLUMBIA, S.C. -- Gov. Mark Sanford said Monday that state law prevents the state from complying with any form of Real ID.
Sanford said he is asking the federal government to not treat the citizens of South Carolina any differently from other states that have laws on their books preventing the implementation of a national ID card program.
In a letter to the Department of Homeland Security, Sanford pointed out the state’s laws. He asked the federal government to not inconvenience South Carolinians who fly or enter federal buildings. He said the state’s driver’s licenses are already some of the most secure in the country.
“At the end of the day, I’m duty-bound to uphold the laws of our state, which right now say we can’t comply with Real ID,” Sanford said.
Sanford said the South Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles has already met roughly 90 percent of the benchmarks laid out by the federal government has laid out.
Sanford said compliance with Real ID would cost the state $116 million over 10 years and mean wait times of up to two hours at the DMV.
“We think the state legislature did the right thing last year when it said no to Real ID,” Sanford said.
Sanford said he will continue working with Homeland Security to keep this law from negatively impacting South Carolina.
Stay with FOX Carolina and foxcarolina.com for the latest on this developing story.
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3) Lex. County GOP chair to oppose Knotts
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FF Note: Does anyone know Ms Shealy's stance on helmet laws and other biker issues? I would like to hear from you if you do?
http://www.thestate.com/politics/story/350908.html
Lex. County GOP chair to oppose Knotts
The chairwoman of Lexington County’s Republican Party said Wednesday she will oppose one of the S.C. Senate’s toughest members, Jake Knotts, in the June GOP primary.
The tone of the challenge by Katrina Shealy was set immediately when the candidates traded pointed criticism.
Shealy, 53, said Knotts is not a loyal Republican and votes against GOP principles. He is the legislator her backers most want out of the General Assembly.
She said Knotts has supported Democrats in gubernatorial primaries over Republicans he does not like.
“You shouldn’t run someone you want in the primary then when you lose you switch to the other team,” the longtime political activist said.
Knotts, 63, whose political style has been described as akin to bull in a china shop, said Shealy is Gov. Mark Sanford’s political payback for his opposition to the governor.
“She’s one of the governor’s candidates,” Knotts said. “I’m not up here to represent the governor. I represent my people. I don’t fold.”
He said “the governor’s crew” painted Shealy a false picture of “how bad Jake Knotts is” and, “She bit the cheese.”
Sanford spokesman Joel Sawyer said the governor has not recruited “any candidate in any race.”
But Knotts has opposed “a number of reforms,’” and “we welcome the ideas and perspective Katrina brings.”
Shealy was defeated in a 2002 race for a Lexington County House seat.
Knotts has been in the State House for 14 years and has held the District 23 Senate seat since a special election in 2002.
— Clif LeBlanc, cleblanc@thestate.com
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4) SC Motorcyclists unite to fight for awareness
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SC Motorcyclists unite to fight for awareness
On April 12, 2008 hundreds of motorcyclists will come together to help raise awareness for motorists to recognize the large amount of motorcycles that travel the roadways every day. The event will start from 12-2 at Whitehall Extension in Anderson.
The Motorcycle Awareness Alliance, MAA, was formed by members of concerned motorcycle clubs, & social clubs in the Upstate that have collaborated to conquer this battle. The purpose of the Motorcycle Awareness Alliance is to help raise money in efforts to raise awareness.
Last year the MAA hosted a games run to raise money. With the money raised they were able to advertise a TV commercial with West Carolina, PRTC, & Charter Communications on major cable networks. The MAA also purchased radio air time on 93.3 The Planet, & WORD.
This year the MAA is hosting their annual poker run, April 12th 2008, to raise money to continue promoting alertness for the roadways. The day of the event Rock 101 will have a live remote at the last stop, Simon’s Bar & Grill. Budweiser has helped promote the event by making our signs for all the locations of the poker run. Several other local businesses have donated money to be sponsors on the tee-shirts.
Even in the early part of the year there have been several motorcycle fatalities. Some of these fatalities stem from Mother Nature, some fall into irresponsible behavior of the motorcyclists, but many are caused due to vehicle drivers claiming not to have seen the motorcycle. The MAA knows that a deer running in the road can’t be stopped, or that all people make bad decisions, but if more people can be reminded to take the time to look twice they could be saving a life. We want to urge drivers to please be cautious. There are many distractions while driving, but no one deserves to have their life taken due to carelessness.
Anyone wanting any information on participating in the event, promoting the event, or donating to the event please contact Leighanne Lombardo at 803-269-6498 or lasc02919@yahoo.com
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5) GOP race gets nasty with claims of illegal workers, trespassing
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FF Note: Ceips has made some questionable statements that seem to suggest she would support an all rider helmet law. Bikers in her district may be wise to approach her opponent.
GOP race gets nasty with claims of illegal workers, trespassing
By JIM DAVENPORT,
AP
Posted: 2008-03-25 18:00:11
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) - Tom Davis is a real estate lawyer, recent gubernatorial chief of staff and likely state Senate candidate who seems to know what he's doing on the public stage. Among his practices: Verify the men painting your Beaufort house are in the country legally.
Because when you're taking on an incumbent who's hired a no-holds-barred political operative to run her campaign, you just can't be too careful.
So that's what Davis did. In fact, the rental property owner says he routinely follows a checklist with contractors, making sure they're insured and licensed and that workers have proper documents, such as copies of a work crew's immigrant ID cards.
"I had that locked together," Davis said this week as he provided The Associated Press with the documents a day after the campaign of Republican Sen. Catherine Ceips accused Davis of hiring illegal immigrants.
Now, a contest that has yet to emerge from the starting gate finds itself saddled with accusations of illegal hiring, criminal trespass and political dirty tricks.
Davis last week ended a second stint as Gov. Mark Sanford's top adviser and moved back to Beaufort to prepare for the June 10 primary. He's one of what's expected to be a smattering of candidates who will go up against incumbent Republicans as Sanford looks to salt the state Legislature with allies that are now hard for him to find.
Ceips' campaign isn't taking the prospect of a primary contest lightly. The first-term incumbent from the coast hired Rod Shealy, a Lexington political consultant known for getting dirt under his fingernails.
On Sunday, Shealy sent The Associated Press pictures and what he called proof that illegal immigrants had worked over the weekend at Davis' Beaufort residence. He said he got the information from Bill Somers, who lives in the neighborhood, and Ceips supporter Randy Bates, who said he regularly drives by the historic district house on his way home.
Somers, a painting contractor who lives about three blocks away, said he suspected the work was being done by illegal immigrants because it was being done on the weekend. "They try do as much work when the town is closed down and there aren't as many inspectors around," Somers said.
Bates claims he and a translator knocked on the door and began asking questions and taking pictures. One man said he was from Honduras and in the country illegally, Bates alleged. He photographed the man and sent the shots to Shealy.
"Every indication is that there was in fact an illegal immigrant subcontractor doing work," Shealy said.
It's little surprise that illegal immigration would be the focus of a political attack and such a swift defense in South Carolina. In exit polls taken during January's presidential primary, Republican voters ranked illegal immigration as their second-most important issue behind the economy; just over half said illegal immigrants should be deported.
Meanwhile, the state House and Senate have passed different bills calling for employers to verify the legal status of the people they hire. Last week, Sanford called on legislators to work out their differences and send him a bill forcing all employers to use a federal database to check immigration status and not rely solely on the documents workers submit.
Davis, who regularly lobbied legislators on Sanford's top issues, said he went "above and beyond the minimum things that this legislation talks about doing" when it came to painting the inside of the house he'd rented out for years.
Davis provided the AP with copies of permanent resident cards issued to three workers, but none resembled the man in Bates' photograph.
"I have never seen that guy before in my life. He is not one of the guys I've seen painting in the house," Davis said in an e-mail after looking at the picture. Davis said his contractor also didn't recognize the man. Davis has called on Ceips to fire her consultants and claims the man alleged to be an illegal immigrant was a "political plant." Shealy denied the accusation.
Beaufort County requires employers to fill out a form saying they don't knowingly employ undocumented workers. If that's inaccurate, the employer faces perjury penalties.
By Monday, Davis was accusing Ceips' supporters of breaking the law by breaking into his house to harass Spanish-speaking workers who were properly documented. Davis, who said he plans to file as a candidate for the Senate seat before Sunday's deadline, said he would file a police incident report alleging trespassing. "This is beyond the pale," he said.
"They broke into my home with cameras," Davis said. "I don't mind vigorously debating the issues, but they broke the law."
Bates said the workers invited him and the translator inside. "Nobody broke in," he said. "There was no yelling and screaming at anybody."
Ceips, meanwhile, said Monday she has called Immigration and Customs Enforcement "sort of asking what I should do. It may be an ongoing case or investigation so I think it's best right now that I just don't get into it any more than that."
Not everything was properly documented. Davis said his contractor was licensed with the state and county. But the contractor did not get a required temporary city business permit, said Robin Davis, the city's business license administrator. That license was issued Monday, after Tom Davis was interviewed by the AP.
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6) Training, awareness has more effect on fatality rates than helmet laws, some say
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http://zanesvilletimesrecorder.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080330/NEWS01/803300303/1002
Training, awareness has more effect on fatality rates than helmet laws, some say
By BRIAN GADD
Staff Writer
ZANESVILLE - Motorcycle helmet use and the effect it has on traffic fatality rates has been debated since the late 1970s, by organizations in favor of mandatory helmet laws and those who say helmet use should be a personal choice.
While some data suggest the number of fatal accidents increases in those states that have repealed their helmet laws, others claim an increase in the number of motorcycle registrations skews that data.
What is clear is that groups and individuals on both sides of the argument have deep-seated opinions and data which can back up their positions.
What's not available is definitive evidence which could settle the debate, although a new study is underway.
Groups such as American Bikers Aimed Toward Education (ABATE) and Motorcycle Ohio which are active in Ohio and Muskingum and Coshocton counties, differ in their approaches to the issue.
While ABATE, which works with the community to raise awareness of biker issues and promotes safety, believes it is up to the individual to wear a protective helmet or not, Motorcycle Ohio's stance is that a helmet is an integral part of the motorcyclists' protective equipment.
Region 2 ABATE Coordinator Dave Davis, formerly of Newcomerstown, said while ABATE does encourage the use of helmets, Ohio is a "freedom of choice" state. Helmets are still mandatory for young riders, under the age of 18.
The region covers Coshocton, Guernsey, Holmes, Knox, Licking and Muskingum counties.
"Anyone over the age of 18 can make that choice to wear a helmet or not," said Davis, whose wife, June, used to be the Coshocton County coordinator for ABATE. "We're not against helmets, we want people to wear them. But we're against laws saying you have to wear them."
Davis said members of the statewide organization and others are in agreement that motorcycle license registration would suffer if a mandatory helmet law was on the books here.
Statistics compiled by Warren Woodward, chairman of the state legislative committee of Street Bikers United in Hawaii, tend to back up that premise.
For example, in California, motorcycle registrations dropped by 225,712 between 1992 and 1999 after a mandatory helmet law went into effect in 1992.
Woodward also said new motorcycle purchases dropped 41 percent in Nebraska, 36 percent in Oregon and 20 percent in Texas in the first full year after mandatory helmet laws were enacted.
But Woodward said the data suggests that when the mandatory laws have been lifted, registrations have soared.
In Florida for instance, registrations increased by 157 percent in the seven years after a mandatory law was repealed in 2000.
Woodward admits that raw data shows a decrease in total number of motorcycle-related deaths in states like Maryland and California after helmets became mandatory.
"This is what helmet law proponents always point to as proof that 'helmet laws save lives,'" Woodward said. "What they inevitably fail to mention is that this overall decrease has been accomplished not because of helmets but because many people simply quit riding. Fewer riders equals fewer accidents equals fewer deaths."
In Davis' opinion, if those riding motorcycles are required to wear helmets, those driving cars should be, too.
"If it's good enough for one, it should be good enough for the other," Davis said. "Ohio is the No. 2 state in the country for registrations right now, and for a lot of bikers, they wouldn't register if they had to wear a helmet. It's a choice the government shouldn't take away. The joke is, one day, about the only thing you will be able to choose is the color of the bike and the chrome."
On the other hand, Bob Secrest with Motorcycle Ohio in Columbus and Imre Szauter, government relations representative with the American Motorcyclist Association in Pickerington are both strong advocates for helmet use
"Helmets do save lives. More people have been saved than if they are not wearing them," Secrest said. He likens the issue to the use of seat belts in cars. And he noted that in Florida, a year after that state repealed its mandatory helmet law, fatalities went way up.
Davis thinks educating motorcyclists, as well as the motorists who share the roadways, counters that argument.
Szauter said although the AMA strongly advocates helmet use, helmets are just one component of the group's aim - to prevent crashes through education.
"Helmet use is not the silver bullet some think it is," Szauter said. "Some think it's a fix-all, and it's not. Helmets don't prevent accidents. It goes back to education of motorcyclists as well as motorists and positive peer pressure."
Studies circulated in the media and on the Internet about a link between helmet use and fatalities are based on a study conducted in California in the 1970's, commonly known as the Hurt Study after lead researcher William Hurt.
"Everything has been based on the Hurt study. Instead of going out and doing more studies, the government keeps referring to the same old information," Davis said. "What we have found out as an organization is that about 70-percent of crashes involving motorcycles are caused by young drivers and inexperienced drivers. That's why we focus on education."
But funding was secured in the Transportation Bill to do a new causation study of motorcycle crashes and is being conducted by Oklahoma State University. Cost of the study is split between federal funds and through dealers and other interested parties. The AMA pledged $100,000 toward the study and has encouraged its members to donate as well.
Russell Brooks, Muskingum County ABATE coordinator, said the study is long overdue.
"It's been 35 years and the government and a lot of these groups are still quoting the same old figures," Brooks said. "Motorcycles and other equipment are so much more safe now, they are made of different materials. We need to get some new statistics. I still think it should be up to the motorcycle rider if they wear a helmet. We're all about educating about it (helmet use) not legislating it."
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7) Missouri's death rate among highest in US despite helmet law
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http://www.news-leader.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008803300377
Missouri's death rate among highest in U.S.
State's fatality numbers steady in recent years.
Amos Bridges
News-Leader
With gas prices climbing past $3 a gallon, riding a motorcycle is a pocketbook issue for Jay Russell.
"I'm getting killed on my commute, but the bike I got gets 70 miles per gallon," said Russell, who hopes to save about $30 a week by riding his new motorcycle to work.
But like other students at a beginning rider course Saturday, Russell wants to stay safe while saving money.
"There's times when I doubt myself," said Russell, who has put about 200 miles on his bike. "That's why I'm taking the class."
As the number of registered motorcycle riders has grown, so too has the number of riders killed on Missouri roads.
However, the state's annual fatality rate -- the number of deaths per 10,000 riders -- remained relatively constant between 2002 and 2006, according to data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Fatality Analysis Reporting System database.
With the exception of 2004, when the motorcycle fatality rate dropped to about 7 per 10,000 registered riders, the fatality rate ranged from about 9 to 12 deaths per 10,000. Although Missouri's rate has not increased as others have, it remains among the highest in the nation, ranking ninth in 2006 and 10th the year before.
The 390 motorcycle deaths from 2002-2006 reflect several national trends:
- Those killed were overwhelmingly (92 percent) male and white;
- The average age of those killed was 38. Just under half were 40 or older;
- About 58 percent of fatal crashes occurred in rural areas, 42 percent in urban areas;
- Fewer than half (44 percent) struck or were struck by another vehicle;
- About 18 percent were not wearing helmets, while another 3 percent wore a helmet but didn't use it properly.
"What we're finding here in Missouri is it's that middle-aged group that seems to be dying the most," said Neil Meyers, state coordinator for the Missouri Motorcycle Safety Program, which coordinates training such as the Saturday class offered by the Traffic Safety Alliance of the Ozarks and Ozarks Technical Community College.
Meyers said the trend appears to be caused by a number of factors.
"Not only are gas prices going up, so people are looking to motorcycles, but you're getting a lot of re-entry riders, baby boomers who used to ride that are getting back into it," he said.
Many overlook the fact that motorcycles on the market now are heavier and more powerful than those they used to ride, Meyers said. "The bike is twice the size of what they used to ride, and of course our physical abilities are not quite what they were when we were younger."
Glenn Blake, a member of the Saturday riding class, agreed with Meyers' assessment.
"I rode when I was in my 20s," said Blake, 55. "The last bike I had was 620 cc -- now it's 1800, so it's a lot more power."
Motorcycle fatalities in Greene County -- which had the fifth most deaths after Kansas City, St. Louis and two surrounding counties -- differed in several ways from state and national trends.
Riders who died in Greene County were younger -- 32, on average -- and 74 percent died while riding on rural roads.
"Those are the kinds of roads that motorcyclists love, including myself -- the twisty-turnies make for a good ride," said Meyers.
With Branson and Table Rock Lake nearby, "you're a destination area," he said. "You get a lot of folks that are coming to that area on motorcycles for various reasons."
Lids: the great debate
Helmet use is another area in which Greene County bucks state trends.
Local riders who died were the least likely in the state to be wearing a helmet, data shows. Of the riders who died in Greene County, 37 percent -- twice the state average -- were not wearing a helmet.
Missouri's helmet law, in effect since 1967, requires all motorcycle riders to wear a helmet. But legislative attempts to repeal or reduce the requirement are an annual occurrence.
The most recent bill, sponsored by State Sen. Luann Ridgeway, R-Clay County, would remove the helmet requirement for riders age 21 and older except on interstate highways.
The bill, which was transferred from the Transportation Committee for consideration by the Senate as a whole, would sunset in 2013 unless renewed by the legislature.
"I think it's a matter of personal freedom," said Ridgeway, of Smithville. "We don't require it for virtually anything else, but we have singled out this segment of our society."
Ridgeway said she'd rather the helmet law be repealed entirely, but tweaks -- such as the continued requirement for helmets on interstates -- have helped reduce opposition.
"It's not an ideal solution and I know that there are people inside the motorcycle riding community that would prefer not to have it that way, but most of them are willing to work in the spirit of compromise to advance the legislation," she said.
Ridgeway said she thinks helmet proponents -- among them the MMSP and the Missouri Department of Transportation -- focus too narrowly on injury and fatality statistics, without considering other factors.
"We do not have enough data to determine whether speed was the primary factor, whether the carelessness of an automobile driver was a contributing factor, whether alcohol or drug use was a contributing factor ...," she said.
Ridgeway also argued that people participating in many other potentially dangerous activities, such as skiing or horseback riding, are not required to wear helmets.
"There's trade-offs in exchange for a modicum of freedom," she said. "If (safety) is to be the singular gold standard, then we should ban motorcycles and we should require people who drive automobiles to wear helmets. No one would seriously consider that ... people wouldn't stand for it."
But Meyers, of the MMSP, said such arguments ignore considerable research, as well as basic common sense.
"No professional (motorcycle) race will let you race without a helmet, so that ought to tell you something," Meyers said. "In a car, you do have a cage around you. There is protective gear that's just automatically built into the vehicle -- when you're on motorcycle, the only protective gear you have is what you put on."
Meyers, a regular motorcycle rider, dismissed claims by some helmet opponents that helmets restrict sight or hearing.
"If the helmet is fitted properly, you have more range of visibility than the human eye can use," Meyers said, adding that the helmet also reduces wind noise. "I can hear traffic better with a helmet on than I can with it off -- I can hear what I need to hear."
Meyers said that compliance with Missouri's helmet law is generally good, although many wear helmets that fail to meet federal Department of Transportation safety guidelines.
"We did a rider survey in 2005 and while we found that 99.3 percent of motorcyclists were observed wearing a helmet, 26.2 percent of the helmets were non-DOT approved helmets," he said. "So a quarter of the riders were wearing novelty helmets, which doesn't help anything."
Meyers said the provision in Ridgeway's bill requiring riders younger than 21 to continue wearing helmets would be almost impossible to enforce.
"It's pretty hard to tell -- whether you're helmeted or not -- how old someone is when they're riding down the highway," he said.
He also pointed to statistics showing that most motorcycle riders killed in Missouri are older -- only about 16 percent killed from 2002-2006 were younger than 21 years old.
And the requirement that helmets be worn on the interstate ignores data showing few fatal accidents occur there, he said. "The rural two-lane is where you would most need the helmets."
Meyers said the MMSP testifies each year in opposition to efforts to remove the helmet law. Both the MMSP and Mo DOT are part of the Missouri Coalition for Roadway Safety, which is launching a public awareness campaign in May -- Motorcycle Safety Month.
"The focus is roadway safety and making sure everyone can arrive safely and arrive alive. Helmets are a big part of that," said Laura Holloway, a MoDOT spokeswoman.
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8) Techies are changing political activism
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http://citizen-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=200880330040&source=nletter-news
Techies are changing political activism
By Doug Abrahms
Gannett News Service
March 31, 2008 12:15 am
Mary Alice Lamb, a stay-at-home mom in rural Haywood County, manages hundreds of Barack Obama supporters using her computer and cellular phone.
The technology existed in the 2004 presidential campaign, when her candidate, Howard Dean, used the Internet to organize meet-ups of supporters throughout the U.S. But this time around, her candidate’s Web site gave her tools to create campaign fliers and local online fundraising pages, and offers tips for holding house meetings.
“There was nothing like this in 2003 to my knowledge,” Lamb said. “We can maintain a high level of volunteer enthusiasm during an extremely long campaign season.”
Experts say technology is merely one tool in running for office, and campaigns don’t necessarily have to go high-tech.
Betty Garofano helped start the first Asheville group of Hillary Clinton supporters the traditional way — phone calls to known supporters, e-mail messages and a posting on the local Democratic Web site. Garofano, who has been active in local Democratic politics for years, knew a lot of Clinton supporters but found little organizing going on.
So she started organizing last week, and the group held its first meeting Thursday night.
“Somebody just had to start it,” said Garofano, of Asheville.
Political opinions and decisions to donate have been made by voters talking to each other at work, parties or dinner tables, said Andrew Rasiej, who runs techPresident, a Web site that monitors presidential technology. But more Americans are using e-mail, cell phones and social networking sites such as Facebook or MySpace to drive opinion, he said.
Voters — including his 82-year-old father — routinely send e-mail to friends that include Web links, YouTube videos and other content, Rasiej said.
“Those (political) conversations are now on steroids,” he said. “When you have a robust online community where the average (campaign) donation is $100, you can go back to them again and again and again.”
Obama and Democratic rival Hillary Rodham Clinton are using technology to drive large gains in voter registrations and raise record amounts of campaign cash.
Supporters and candidates are reaching out via:
• Cell phones, which can be used to blast text messages telling supporters to turn on a televised speech or send in donations. Volunteers with cell phones also have blocks of voter phone numbers to call, which can replace centralized phone banks.
• Social networking sites. Obama had 719,000 Facebook supporters at the end of March, according to techPresident, compared with 139,000 for Clinton and 97,000 for Republican John McCain.
• Internet and e-mail. Obama has attracted more than a million donors, and a majority of his contributions are made online, according to his campaign.
All presidential candidates use e-mail and Web sites to get their message out to varying degrees, said David All, a consultant who designs Web sites for Republican candidates.
Clinton’s campaign has HillaryHub, a Web site devoted to positive news stories and putting out opposition research on her competitors, he said.
Republican candidate Ron Paul raised substantial money on the Internet, he said.
John McCain, the presumed Republican nominee, recently added Carly Fiorina, former chief executive of Hewlett Packard, and Meg Whitman, former chief executive of eBay, as campaign volunteers to strengthen his technology outreach, All said.
Obama’s campaign has succeeded in getting voters to sign up on its Web sites or as friends on Facebook or MySpace — the first step toward funneling them into becoming volunteers and donors, he said. Voters who are plugged into these online communities are more willing to donate repeatedly, he said.
Obama has an advantage in appealing to young voters, who are more comfortable with technology, he said.
“This is the future of politics and fundraising,” All said. “Obama has led from day one.”
Lamb said that Obama’s technology and organization allowed her group to begin seeking volunteers a year before the election, and the paid campaign staff was able to move in just before the North Carolina primary. Obama’s campaign used the technology to connect with voters, she said.
“They’re not just saying get online and blog,” Lamb said, “but get online and connect with people on your ZIP code.”
On the Net: TechPresident: www.techpresident.com.
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