Are We Frozen in Time? Rethinking Progress Beyond Technology

Are We Frozen in Time? Rethinking Progress Beyond Technology

We live in an age of dazzling technological advancement. Every year brings breakthroughs that transform how we communicate, work, and live. From artificial intelligence to quantum computing, technology is leaping forward at an almost incomprehensible pace. Yet, amidst this rapid progress, another truth emerges: our socio-economic systems, political frameworks, and ethical paradigms seem to lag behind, as if frozen in time.

The contrast is striking. While our devices grow smarter, our societal structures remain riddled with inefficiencies and inequities. We marvel at the potential of AI to solve complex problems but grapple with political polarization that hinders even basic decision-making. We explore the stars while many here on Earth struggle for access to clean water and education. And despite the growing interconnectedness of the digital age, divisions rooted in race, religion, and ideology persist—sometimes with even greater ferocity.

But it doesn’t have to be this way.

Progress Beyond Gadgets

Technological innovation has always been a double-edged sword. It provides us with tools—but tools need direction, and direction comes from values, ethics, and collective purpose. History shows us that great technological leaps often create or exacerbate social challenges if they are not accompanied by equally bold advances in how we govern, share resources, and relate to one another.

Consider the Industrial Revolution. While it brought incredible advancements in productivity, it also deepened economic inequality and led to harsh working conditions. It took decades of labor movements, policy reforms, and cultural shifts to address these imbalances. Similarly, our current technological revolution demands parallel progress in our socio-economic and moral frameworks.

Where Do We Begin?

1. Education as a Catalyst

Education is the bedrock of change. Just as we teach coding and digital literacy, we must prioritize teaching empathy, critical thinking, and civic responsibility. A society that can debate ethical questions with the same rigor it applies to technological challenges is one that is prepared for sustainable progress.

2. Redefining Success

Our metrics for success often revolve around GDP, technological milestones, or market valuations. But what if we shifted focus? What if success was measured by the reduction of inequality, the level of civic engagement, or the well-being of the most vulnerable members of society?

3. Ethics at the Forefront

Technology without ethics is like a ship without a compass. Whether it’s the development of AI or the exploration of genetic editing, every technological frontier must be guided by ethical considerations. This requires inclusive, global conversations that bring together diverse perspectives.

4. Political Renewal

Many political systems are mired in outdated structures and partisanship. To navigate the challenges of the 21st century, we need innovative governance models that prioritize collaboration over competition and long-term planning over short-term gains.

A Call to Action

The promise of the future lies not just in faster processors or smarter algorithms but in a world where technological progress is matched by human progress. This requires us to break free from the inertia of outdated systems and to invest as much in moral and ethical innovation as we do in technological ones.

It’s time to imagine a future where humanity evolves hand-in-hand with its tools. A future where our socio-economic and spiritual progress finally catches up to our technological achievements. A future where the question isn’t just “What can we build?” but “How can we build a better world for all?”

The path forward is challenging, but it is also filled with potential. Together, we can ensure that progress is not just rapid but also meaningful, inclusive, and enduring.

Advocate: A Tech Startup

Advocate is a tech startup. It is in round one. It is in for both the voter and the people running for office. It is impressive that it already has clients in Kenya and New Zealand, among other places. It is pursuing the "enterprise model," as in get the political party not the solo candidate.

From Senators in ancient Rome to parliamentarians in the 1200s UK to the revolutionaries of the American revolution to the chaos in Cleveland, democracy has evolved, but apparently not enough. "Driving an always-on political atmosphere where supporters and candidates are more thoroughly engaged throughout the total political cycle, not just during elections."

"Campaign finance will change when less TV ad spend allows the decoupling of the crippling money needs.....There will be location independent, mobile and secure voting as barriers will be removed in favor of rising voter turnout/engagement in the processes."

Chris Bystrom is the CEO and one of the three Cofounders.

But how will Advocate do what it wants to do? What is the product roadmap? What are its chances? Who are the other players in the space? When he came back from Cleveland I met up with him in his office near Union Square.

Advocate_BSF16_WhyNotNow_Final_7716 from Chris Bystrom

Advocate_Product_Overview_7716 from Chris Bystrom

When Chris emailed me suggesting I write up about his tech startup, I called him up. One of the first things I asked was, how did you find me?

Oh, I was just looking online for people in the New York area who were writing about politics.

I was standing on the sidewalk in front of Baruch College near Little India smooching off the city's free gigabit WiFi from stands that used to be payphones but now look like pins on a Google map, only in 3D. He was in Williamsburg, getting ready to go to Cleveland.

"To protest?"

"No. To distribute flyers about the company, to onboard people."

We got disconnected a few times. Was the WiFi really gigabit, as promised, or more like a Trump University course, high on promise, low on delivery?



I just spent an hour with Chris, holed up at WeWork on 33 Irving Place near Union Square, right before lunch. It was an intense experience of a conversation. Technology is going to eat up politics but, just like with health, there have been many false starts by people who, just like with health, came to politics from the technology not politics angle and failed. Hello Google.

When you are at a WeWork, you feel incubated. WeWork itself has been an Uber size startup. It feels like it was launched only yesterday and is now in the billions. WeWork has revolutionized the work space concept.



What is in your background that got you to do this, I asked. Unless you have a burning passion, you can't do a startup.

His great grandfather was Governor of Nebraska. His mother is political. He grew up in a political family. He learned politics like he learned English. Kind of like me, both sides of my family is political. You get infected early.



"How do you end up in Kenya?"

"Skype."

Nobody does mobile money quite like the Kenyans. I am talking m-Pesa. The digital democracy tools are going to have to be redesigned with SMS only in mind.



"What about for countries with authoritarian regimes? Will you go into those?"

I was not happy with the answer. There are 120 democracies. That's a big enough market.

Maybe so, but that's not the entire market. That's not the market segment with the greatest need. Oracle only became a serious company after it won a contract with the CIA. Maybe the State Department would like to become a client. Maybe George Soros might wish for a much better ROI on his liberally sprinkled money.



What about the competition? He listed a few: Nationbuilder, Brigade, ChangePolitics. I was not impressed with any of them. It felt like Advocate had a first mover advantage, which is surprising. Politics is one of the oldest professions, some might say the very oldest. And technology has been around for a while. But will Advocate deliver on the promise? Will it do what it is promising to do? 2016 will see $4.4 billion spent on political TV ads. It is not possible to talk to someone in 30 seconds without insulting their intelligence. Craig's List killed the newspaper classifieds. Will Advocate kill the 30 second politics ads? That is the question. It has a nine month runway based on money in the bank. That is plenty of time to prove it just might. Having already onboarded 100 American politicians before even launching is not a bad start for this eight person team, a few in San Francisco, one in Chicago, most of them in New York.

 

I Am So Glad Jon Stewart Retired

Finally Barack Obama is getting some limelight.

Iran, Russia: Election Holding Non Democracies

ayatullah khamenei (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

A country can hold elections and still not be a democracy. Iran and Russia are good examples.

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First Year: Immigration Reform

On par with health care reform and Wall Street reform. It has to happen in 2013.

This is important.

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A Multi Party System For America

Image via WikipediaTwo party is still multi party. Two is not one. Two is more than one. But a two party system is not a true multi-party system.

Yesterday I drew an end game scenario for the Occupy Wall Street movement: Occupy Wall Street: My Idea Of Obama 2012.

A more ambitious scenario would be where the movement emerges as a third party in American politics. Step one still would be about turning America into a one person, one vote democracy. But then a departure would take place.

2012 would be too early for the movement to seek a presidency of its own, but 2016 might be a ripe time.

This could happen fast.

A three party system would bring greater political innovation.

Occupy
Sales Tax, Wealth Equity Tax
The Conversation Is The Revolution
Tahrir Square In America

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The Conversation Is The Revolution

Tahrir Square In America
Occupy America

Democracy in America is ripe for a quantum jump. Total campaign finance reform has to be enacted in America. Because democracy is meant to be one person one vote.

Turning a dictatorship into a democracy is a quantum jump. There are parallels.

Both involve congregating. Large masses of people congregating.

When a country is already a democracy like America is, violence will not be seen. Most disruptions will also be avoided. The message takes some time to gel, and even then stays evolving.

So far the Occupy Wall Street movement has exhibited an amazing mastery of social media. Actions are piped out. Voices come streaming back in. There is conversation.

That conversation itself is the revolution. It has to last many months.

Until fundamental change is brought about to the very fabric of this democracy people have to stay put. Total campaign finance reform, universal health, universal, lifelong education.

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Bold, Drastic Action Necessary

Image via WikipediaThe Stimulus Bill Was Messed Up
Three Million Jobs
Global New Deal Needed
A Second Stimulus Bill Needed

The governments in America and Europe have to together come up with a two trillion dollar fund. A big chunk of that money has to go to connect every human being to high speed internet access. It will pay for itself. Down the line the infrastructure thus built would gradually be sold off to the private sector. Money thus received would pay for the expenses now. I foresee profits.

This has to be completed in one to two years.

The second step would be to lay down a new architecture for global finance. This is hard for Americans to do because that might involve bringing to an end the dollar's special place in the world.

There has to be a massive push for democracy. A universal spread of democracy could be brought about in a few swift years. Once that happens rule of law between nations can then be imagined. Once rule of law between nations has been established, America could bring down its defense spending from 600 billion dollars annually to a more manageable 100 billion dollars. America can not think of a better cost cutting plan.

The US Military Budget Needs To Come Down To 100 Billion From 600

And there is a need for massive jobs programs.

Three Million Jobs

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The Chinese Communist Party Can Keep The Power If They Agree To Pluralism, Federalism

Image via WikipediaThe impending revolution in China can have a different outcome than that in most places. The revolution in China could conclude with the Chinese Communist Party continuing to be in power.

By summer, if not earlier, China will be rattling too. And this is not going to be something confined to one square in Beijing. The unrest will sweep the country at large, in big cities and small towns alike.

Arab Dictators Will Fall Like A House Of Cards

The Chinese Communist Party is going to have to exercise maximum restraint. If the CCP chooses to do what the generals in Burma did, if the CCP goes down the Gaddafi road, then the Chinese Communist Party itself is going to be thrown into the dustbins of history.

But it does not have to be that way. The Chinese Communist Party has undertaken major economic reforms over decades to lift hundreds of millions out of poverty. Now it is time for fundamental political reform.

The reform will have to come in the form of amendments to the Chinese constitution that will guarantee human rights, and yes that includes free speech, and yes that includes religious freedom, and amendments that will make it legal to organize political parties in China, and amendments that will allow for a federal China so the people in Tibet can finally breathe after half a century of utter disrespect.

The Saudi King Is No Exception, He Has To Go Too

The Chinese Communist Party should not so much as think in terms of a bloodbath. That path leads to irrelevance for the CCP, and much unnecessary chaos for China.
Image by Matthew Stewart | Photographer via Flickr
I believe the Chinese Communist Party has the option to take a non military response to the impending revolution and guide it in a way that does not disturb China's stellar economic performance.

But I'd be the first to say China does not need a democracy like they have in America. In America they don't have campaign finance reform which makes for a rather silly democracy. The Chinese should architect a multi-party democracy that starts with total campaign finance reform.

China: 2 PM, Sunday
Et Tu, China?

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Inciting Violence: Beyond Wrong, It Is Criminal

Barack Obama just had his Oklahoma City moment. A Congresswoman got shot at in Arizona. It is good for him politically. Now the political pendulum will swing. His re-election begins now. That is the political reality. The political pendulum started swinging the way of Bill Clinton after the act of terror in Oklahoma City.

But is the violence worth the price?

There is a political responsibility to be taken. This act of violence was Palin inspired. When you talk in terms of "reloaded" from the podiums of the world, am I supposed to give you a pass just because you are white and not brown like a certain guy by the name of Osama Bin Laden? If you incite violence, you are no different from Osama Bin Laden. Bin Laden does not command an army. He inspires people to engage in acts of violence. He is a sought after man. He is on the wanted lists of the world.

A politician in a democracy speaking from public podiums whose language can be construed as inciting violence is no different from Osama Bin Laden. There is a direct connection between the language the Palins of the world used over the past two years and what ended up happening in Arizona.

The Tea Party Is Getting America Talibanized

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Reshma 2010 Party Tonight

Image via Wikipedia

I am headed to a party tonight. Reshma 2010 has new offices.

Reshma 2010: New Office: Party: June 21 Monday

Food and Drinks
Monday, June 21st at 6:30 p.m.
The fifth floor of 143-145 Madison Avenue
(between 31st and 32nd Street)
Office opening party!

I am excited.

Full Timer Or Volunteer

I Want To Go Full Time With Reshma 2010

I have thought in terms of going full time with the campaign. But it is very possible the campaign would prefer to have me continue as a volunteer instead. That would be more than fine with me. One, that would mean the campaign is very confident of winning on September 14. Two, the best things I would do as a full timer would be the few things I would do as a volunteer. Meeting ordinary people is the best part of working on a political campaign. Three, going to work some kind of a tech sector job might be best for the startup I intend to work on in about 15 months: I got one very good lead as of now.

Politics is to me what sailing is to Larry Ellison. It is more than a hobby, but it is not my career. I am a Third World guy. I want to devote my work life to help bring more people online. The tech scene is where I belong.

But I must admit the campaign has me excited, and I keep having thoughts of all I would want to do as a full timer. Maybe I should talk them into letting me do the full time thing for 2-3 weeks. But, no matter what, I keep having thoughts I want to share. What if I were to go full time?

Kayak.com

Everyone at Kayak.com does customer service. They are the leading travel website. Everyone on the campaign staff needs to engage with voters on a daily basis.

I would want to work a subway stop for an hour during the evening rush hour every day at work, say 5:30-6:30 PM. Then get back to the office, and make phone calls for an hour from 7-8 PM. Those three hours have to be the core of what I would do as a full timer.

Google.com

Maybe we can not afford to offer free food like Google does, and we can not afford to offer variety like they do. But I have an idea. How about a one item $1.50 cheap lunch? You can get 50 frozen dumplings for $8. That is five lunches. The campaign pays for ketchup and hot sauce. I could get this thing going for an initial capital of $200.

Mango lassi would be free.

Revenue Neutral

I think I could raise $200 per day or more from working the subway stops every single work day.

"Hi. Reshma is running for Congress. Please visit her website and donate $20." (Hand flyer)

I could do that ad infinitum. (Freehand Exercise: 1,000 Push-Ups, 1,000 Squats, 1,000 Crunches)

I would raise the money the campaign would have to dole me out to have me as a full timer.

2 Weeks, 12 Weeks, Or 18 Weeks

It is very possible I sign up and I am sucked in for all of 18 weeks. After September 14 it is going to feel like I am working not just for Reshma but also for Obama.

40 Hours, Or 70 Hours

1 PM to 9 PM is 40 hours a week. But if I were to do a 10-12 stint in the morning from home, doing the blog daily for Reshma thing, and instead of 9 PM, I start leaving at 10, then that is another 15 hours. That is 55. Then you go to an event, and you stick around for a long, long time. Or if you decide to work an extra day closer to September 14, that is closer to 70 hours.

I think at 70 hours it is going to give you that startup feeling.

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Iran: The World Has Wasted A Year

Image via Wikipedia

It has been a year since the Iranians have been braving the streets. Their courage is in stark contrast to the Iranian diaspora that has failed to help steer the political goal of the revolution from forcing the mullahs to hold a re-election to pushing the theocracy out of power altogether and turning Iran into a modern democracy, and in stark contrast to the global netroots/grassroots that has been myopic, unreal, shallow, and just plain not pragmatic. And I am not even going to talk about the world leaders and the world governments.

A theocracy and a dictatorship is designed to be unreasonable. If you want to feel the warmth of reason from Tehran, you help the democracy movement. You help the reform movement. But the people who are pissed the mullahs might be sharpening nukes want to act cautious lest they cross those mullahs. That is insane. There is not much logic in that thinking. The world has to help the Iranian democracy movement to the hilt. Talk of moral support sickens me. Turn your Twitter avatar green. You impressed someone else, not me. Because I have been under the impression you are going to start and stop with that. That's not enough. This democracy movement should have been over and concluded by now. This is taking too long. A democracy movement is supposed to last weeks, not months and years. This is unreal. The world has not stood with the people of Iran.

There are two huge reasons for the world at large to get behind the democracy movement in Iran. One, nukes. Two, the larger so called War On Terror. You want Iran to become a democracy because a democracy makes sense. A democratic Iran the world will be able to reason with. And you want the democracy movement in Iran to succeed so that success can be replicated in every other country in that region. I can't wait for democracy movements to erupt in Saudi Arabia and Egypt, for example.

I am glad the people in Iran are still going strong. I am sad they have been so let down by the world.

Effort has to be made to shift the goal. Begging the mullahs to hold a re-election will only lead to frustration and possible failure. You give the mullahs a deadline. They step down or you shut the country completely down until they step down and make way for a caretaker government that will hold elections to a constituent assembly. And you announce all human rights violations to that point will be persecuted by the caretaker government. The beatings of protesters and the torture of those detained has to be accounted for. There has to be a price to pay.

And the world has to give logistical support. A democracy movement asks for logistics just like military misadventures in Iraq and Afghanistan do.

Iran: An Opportunity
Iran: Yes, We Can
How We Have Failed Iran
Dumb White People (DWPs) And Iran
The Fraud In Iran
Iran: This Is What I Am Talking About
The First Major Revolution Of The 21st Century Happened In Nepal

A democracy movement is science: it can be made to work every single time.

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A 14-7 Office For Reshma 2010

Image of Reshma Saujani

I want a Reshma 2010 office that is open every day of the week from 8 AM to 10 PM all the way to September 14. Your average staffer still works about 50 hours a week, but shutting the operations down during weekends is a very, very bad idea. I volunteer to work weekends, and I volunteer to work the late hours. I get to take my day off on Monday or Tuesday. And I like sleeping in late anyways.

The hours go up as we get closer to September 14. Victors put in hours.

An open office is one that has at least one person in the office. We want people out in the field as much as in the office. But we want one person who will answer the phone. "Hi, this is Jon with Reshma 2010." "Hi, this is Kevin with Reshma 2010." We answer the phone 14-7 unfailingly. And we talk to the caller as long as they will talk to us. And we answer all emails. All emails. What is that one email address?

People still will get their days off, but not all of them will be off on Sundays. A lot of community action happens during weekends. A lot of events are evening events. Everybody on the team has to have a phone that is always on. When you are not in the physical office, you are in the mobile office. But if we plan well, the last minute fire fighting phone calls will be kept to the minimum. When you are with people, be with the people, get off the phone, concentrate on the people. Shower attention on the volunteers, shower attention on the media people, shower attention on the community leaders and activists. Get on a first name basis with all of them. You can't do that if you are on the phone with the campaign office instead.

I can do weekends, and I can do the late shift, no problem. I could take Wednesdays off. I hear the Bronx Zoo is free entry on Wednesdays.

Read, read, read. Read the New York Times. Read it every day. Read it first thing in the morning. It is a good newspaper. Got to talk up the politics of the day. What is the latest? What is happening in DC? What is happening in Albany? What's up in City Hall? What is Bloomberg up to today? Read up. Read it on online. Buy it in print. Share it. Pass it around. Ask to read the business section when someone else is reading the front page. I want to see stains on that paper, your hand stains.

On your day off go read a book.

Call, call, call. Spend at least one hour every working day calling up voters. I don't know yet what the setup is like in the office, but we need a few dedicated landlines for that express purpose. One hour is minimum. Do it at random hours of the day. Do it because you need a break from staring at that computer screen.

Meet, meet, meet. Meeting ordinary people is the best part of working on a political campaign. You should have fun doing it. You should look forward to it. You should feel like, I am having so much fun meeting people, why is Reshma even paying me to do this? Paying me to meet people is a scam. I would do it for free. This is so much fun. If you are not enjoying meeting people, you are in the wrong line of business. Go become a carpenter or something. Or a rocket scientist.

Drink, drink, drink. Do not get dehydrated. Always carry with you a bottle of water wherever you go. We just need the plastic bottles. Tap water works just fine. Bottled water is tap water with a brand name. That is all. Bring the bottles back to the office and fill them up. Never run out of water. The best things in life are free. Water is one of them. Water is officially the best drink anyone can get hold of. Better even than milk.

I demand we keep a mixer/grinder in the office, and always a ready stock of yogurt, mango pulp, icecream, and ice. I will make mango lussee for everyone, as often as I have to. But I'd prefer to teach it to you. You add two raw eggs and some milk into that mix, and it is a meal. I have tried that many times. I want an endless supply of lassee for me, lassee that I make myself. Yogurt, mango pulp, milk, eggs, icecream, ice. Kevin, if you want me to call you boss, do this. Keep the supplies stocked up. This is what I mean by keep the trains running.

Mock debates every week. Megan stands in as Maloney. Kevin moderates. I do a brutal analysis after it is over. All staffers and interns are encouraged to come watch, to offer one liners, funny and otherwise. We are opening up a bank for one liners. Donate one liners. We are not asking for blood. It is just one liners. Any staffer/intern/volunteer can apply to stand in as Maloney. If you think you are a great debater, contact me.

Work the subway stops. Everyone on the team - staffers, interns, top volunteers - must work a subway stop in the district for at least an hour during rush hour each week. We will meet many non voters in the process, but that is okay. Remember that part about meeting people? All we are trying to do is get people to visit our website. And they don't have to be in the district to donate. If they are not in the district, maybe they know someone who is. If they are not a voter, they might know someone who is. Hi, Reshma is running for Congress, and she would like you to visit her website. And you hand out the flyer.

I am assuming all staffers have the monthly metro card. I will get one too. If anyone wants to get on the Metro PCS family plan with me, holler! Unlimited talk, text, web sounds like sliced bread. I have never tried it. I am about to. On the other hand, getting the new 4G Android phone from Sprint might allow me to video blog for the campaign every day, several times a day. Video blog, tweet. Feedback welcome. I am going to ask Nihal about this tomorrow.

Buzzd: Paramendra

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My Political Resume, Reshma 2010, And September 14

Image via Wikipedia

Happy Memorial Day Weekend. Summer officially begins. I don't know about you but I like it warm better than I like it cold.

I am not exactly taking my time to decide if I want to go work full time for Reshma 2010 or not. Right now I don't have the option: Immigration Status. But my work papers should arrive soon.

I moved to the city summer of 2005 to launch my company but got sucked into working for Nepal's democracy and social justice movements full time for the better part of two years. That was a lot of eating into savings. Throwing a dictator off is way more challenging than winning a Congressional race in the US. In a democracy movement, people die, for one.

All I know is I am on the cusp of deciding to do it. I don't need much convincing. This is a historic race: the first Indian American woman ever to run for Congress. The campaign is not in top shape, and I have the option to try and make a difference. The machine is behind the opponent. That makes it even more fun.

Tomorrow I am planning on dropping by the campaign offices: 833 Broadway. I was there for the first time for the tech panel discussion event with Al Wenger and others. I have not been back since. I have stuck to the canvassing.

What Are You Doing Monday? Come Meet Al Wenger (technbiz.blogspot.com)

I think Reshma 2010 will be a great thing for me to do for three and a half months. I have toyed with a few different options. I could just keep being a dedicated volunteer. I could go do it for a month. But doing it to September 14 makes a lot of sense.

I have an impressive political resume.

Both sides of my family were political. I was born in India, grew up in Nepal. My grandfather was headman of the village for 15 years. He was sitting down for dinner and a group of men from the neighboring village came over, barged in, lifted him up, and the celebrations began. A committee of sorts had decided on his name. He was completely unawares. I was there. My father ran for parliament later. He lost. My mother's cousin was Education Minister for Bihar, the second most populous state in India with as many people as there are in France, for much of the 1990s. Laloo Yadav was Chief Minister. More recently Laloo was India's Railway Minister. The CEO of General Electric called him the best Railway Minister in the world. I am half Bihari.

I was House Captain in Class 5 and Class 10, and in Class 12 the school authorities had to offer me the office of School Captain against their desires for being the obvious candidate. All that was at the top school in Kathmandu.

After high school I was Vice General Secretary to a political party in Nepal that had two MPs. A central committee member of that party from that time is currently a cabinet minister in Nepal.

At college in Kentucky I ran for Freshman Class President and everyone else got more votes than me. Five months later I got myself elected student body president. Everybody who had ever been somebody in the SGA had run. I won by three votes.

I was a Deaniac in 2004 in Indiana. And I was one of Obama's earliest people in NYC.

• Long Walk To Freedom: Just A Third World Guy Dazzled By The City April 2007
• Long Walk To Freedom May 2007
• Barack Has To Talk Much About His Mother
• Barack's Mother Makes An Appearance
• Give Me A Huge Rally In This City Before Summer Is Over September 2007
• The Largest Rally In US Presidential Campaign History September 2007

I was the only Nepali in America to have worked full time for the democracy movement in Nepal a few years back. (The First Major Revolution Of The 21st Century Happened In Nepal)

• Janakpur Rally, Biggest In Nepal Since 1990 January 2006
• "Robin Hood Im Internet" February 2006

I think I would want the title of Director. There is the candidate. And she sits atop the campaign organization structure. Then there is the Campaign Manager and the Director. The Campaign Manager is the formal head of the organization, makes sure the trains are running on time. The Director works in partnership with the Campaign Manager but keeps an amorphous role so as to be able to do some out of the box thinking. The Field Director reports to the Campaign Manager but also directly to the candidate. All the Field Organizers report to the Field Director. But since we are talking about 20 people or less, everyone is talking to everybody.

I think I want Campaign Manager pay and status, but I want to work in perfect sync with the existing organization. I would want to conduct a brutal analysis of the campaign from November to today, which I am going to call phase one. From now to September 14 is phase two.

This can be done, victory is possible. That is why I am interested in putting my time into this. But there has to be a scientific approach. Numbers have to be faced. Where do we stand in the polls today? We don't stand well.  Our candidate lacks name recognition compared to the incumbent. But that can change rapidly. We want as many debates as possible, starting as early as possible. The debates will be the turning point.

But we also have to do the JFK thing. He first ran for the House, and later for the Senate. And his number one strategy would be to seek speaking assignments every possible place. He would start out by cracking a joke, often a joke he had cracked somewhere else, and then he would dive into his speech, and next. We have to take our candidate to every possible political and community event in town. Make sure she has at least two staffers with her. Megan would be a great person to accompany her. We have to seek speaking assignments. No organization is too small. No topic too esoteric.

One third of the district is South Asian. But we don't have any South Asian staffer working the field. I guess someone like me gets to dive into that.

I really need to spend a few days at the office before I start laying it all out. I have a feeling some of the stuff I want to get done is already being worked upon. But then I also want to make the best of the fact that I will be new and fresh. I will be able to offer perspectives that someone who has been on the staff for months might not be able to. You get used to seeing things a certain way.

We have to track some numbers. How much money have we raised? How much do we continue to raise? How much has been spent? How much do we have in the bank? Have we paced the spending well? What will be the big ticket items down the line? Where do we stand in the polls? How many community newspapers have written about us? How many community leaders have we contacted? How many interns do we have? How many volunteers do we have? I was at John Liu's primary victory party. It felt to me like 30 young people in their early 20s delivered the city to him. If we could have 15 razzmatazz staffers, 20 psyched interns, and 30 volunteers out of the ordinary, we could do it. We have to put the volunteers on the pedestal. We need to throw a party. How about a barbecue in some park?

My Talk With Kevin Lawler Of Reshma 2010

We have to have superior debate preparation. The debates are the political equivalent of boxing championship fights. Everything we do till then will culminate in how we do during the debates. They will be crucial. What can the candidate do to maximize her chances? What are the pre-debate things to do? What are the post-debate things to do?

I think I am going to get a monthly metro card, and a Metro PCS unlimited talk, text and web phone. I want to reach out to the volunteer base in a big way, I want to reach out to community newspapers and leaders.

And I am psyched about creating the rudiments of a 2016 platform for Reshma. We have to stand by all Obama stands for. Because that is what Maloney is going to do. She is not going to offer anything new except the promise that she will vote for everything Obama wants her to vote for. Well, that much we can do too.

We are lucky to have a policy wonk candidate. That will make the task of debate preparation so much easier.

This can be done. This race can be won.

Me @ BBC

There is something we could learn from Paul English, the Kayak.com guy. His focus on customer service is out of the box and legendary. His team replies to all emails from customers. And they have a big, red phone in the office. They pick it up when it rings.

Paul English Writes Back
Kayak, Paul English, Africa, Free Wireless Internet

Maybe we should make it mandatory for all staffers and all interns. You must call up voters for at least one hour each day. And identify the top 30 volunteers, and get the campaign manager to call them up once a week. Identify the top 10 volunteers and get the candidate to call them up once a week. Identify all the community newspapers in the district. And get the candidate to visit their offices, as many as possible. I'd happily visit all of them as Director to get them to do at least one story on us. Every such story is free advertising. Do the cost benefit analysis. We come out on top.

There has got to be a way to find out about all the community events in the district. Some staffer has to show up to all of them. Maybe me. I would be okay with that. We need to have an enthusiastic volunteer in every block in the district, someone willing to throw a house party, knock on 10 doors.

The idea is to get 30,000 votes to win. We want to have called all those 30,000 people before election day.

I am getting sucked into this thing like I got sucked into the Nepal democracy movement a few years back.

• A 2016 Platform (the best ideas will not come from the two policy staffers, or even the candidate, or me, or any staffer; there are policy wonks at NYU and Columbia, and Harvard and Yale we have to reach out to, think tanks; we have to build a matrix of a network of academics) 
• Top notch, razzmatazz debate performances (We need to start having mock debates every week. I think Megan should stand in as Maloney.) 
• An amazing grassroots matrix of supporters. 
• Community media. 
• Subway stops: work them like crazy. (Maybe we should make it mandatory for all staffers and all interns; you must work one subway stop for one hour during rush hour every week; pair up with someone, go do it) 

We intend to hit the national headlines come September 14.

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