blue balls, ga

you know those ads on craigslist that offer a job with the democrats. turn georgia blue!
its so vague while being so intriguing. i could do something! i could get involved! i can be the grassroots obamaite who door to doors her way to having her a big bronze statue of community inspired vanity.

so we tried it out, my friend melanie and i.

interview. you go to the democratic party of georgia office in midtown atlanta. sit in a room with walls full of go-pro-demo signs. older ones too. carter to obama they are like mounted kills of a successful campaign year.  so here we sit in the trophy room in front of this guy who is rolling out the run down. he is animated, bright, good looking, and young. he is telling you that you too can be apart of this party. you too can have a hand in turning georgia from red to blue! goddamnit it you could even do-good your way to the toppist top, get a nice slick sign with your name on it, and inspire a new round a kids to get excited in politics.
the guy really does not stop talking the entire time. what he is saying is relevant, however. important words to hear for getting ready to charge fourth into hostile republican territories.
they are trying not to change people's minds, necessarily. they are just wanting to get the people who are on their side more involved and more active in the party. their mountain of success is flourishing with active, happy member of the community.
it is really quite a beautiful concept.
we were way into it.

they take you one on one and ask simple 'why do you wanna' questions. they told me to come back tomorrow. 
wear something casual and comfortable. "you know, nothing too fancy for the office."

the next day melanie and i show up ready for it.
we gather in a meeting room with about ten young democratic go-getters to max. we get paired with someone to train us and split up. for the next teo hours i am in front of a girl who hands me a script sheet and tells me what i am about to read has been tested and tweeked for years to verbal perfection in order to successfully get contributions from people.
    "Hi, my name is ______ and i'm with the Democratic Party of Georgia. As you may know, with this year's election we finally have a chance to take back the governor's mansion. But with 9 state seats open and an entire legislature up for grabs, .................................. So basically, what we are asking people to do, is ...."

and you are suppose to say it like you mean it.
we rehearse it over and over. role playing like you are in therapy. she gives possible scenarios and dialogues that could go down. people avoiding a contribution, being rude, trying to trick or confuse you about politics.
it seemed easy enough. ridiculous enough, as well.

back into the meeting room and we get re-paired with someone to canvas with. four to five people ride to various northern neighborhoods and get ready to hustle. the girl i am assigned to shadow, hilary, is the driver and delivers people to their respected 'turfs' with maps of the neighborhood in hand. the streets are colored according to how many houses per block have given money or could possibly, if you get the right person to answer the door. it feels like a game of shutes and latters. hilary and i get to our turf and get to getting.

walking up each driveway is nerve-racking. is this person going to freak out? are they really going to give us $200? how do you become the person on the other side of this door who is about to get hit up for their obvious aabundance of dollars.

and as it goes she does her thing. we get rejected over and over. people tell us that we were just there last week. we are surprisingly met with a lot of gratitude. people are happy that we are going door to door, trying to reach voters face on face. but no money. they are not willing to give us money.

in my head it starts to become so clear. people do not really have money these days. resources are not limited to cash, but that is all the democrats are asking for. and for the small amount they are making each day it is basically just going to pay themselves. not really to support and entire campaign. they do it, however to reach people. to get them involved and understanding the government structure. i am thinking, however, that money is the wrong way to go about it.

to get the community involved in a campaign is very important. there is a need for people to understand the issues, trust candidates, and be informed on what is or is not going to change when their candidate is elected. trying to use money as a motivator for that is choking and confusing the grassroots movement of the democratic party. people who they are trying to reach, the people who have the money to fund them, are not as concerned by the issues. they are also not as willing to give in a potential hope for improvement. there is no instant return.
the communities they should be heavily focusing on are the poorer. although they might not have the cash to fund big events or the bright blue tour bus they candidate will surely cruise on, they are hungry to get involved. they desire a real voice, and they have other, more genuine things to offer other then cash.

suffice it to say melanie and i quit. i told the fast talking guy back at the office that if they want to use me for what i am good at, then challenge me to do more then just begging for change.
the next night we went out selling food on the street to hungry people outside of bars at night. people were a hundred times more responsive and supportive of what we were doing. we even got tips! and it stimulated conversation about what we were doing and why they should care. engaging the community one falafel at a time.