Maine GOP Apparently Believes That Playing World Of Warcraft Makes You Unfit For Office
from the youth-vote? dept
The Republican Party often has trouble attracting younger voters. Perhaps they should try not attacking one of the most popular pastimes for those voters. According to an entertaining report at Ars Technica, the Maine Republican Party has gone after a Democratic candidate for State Senate, Colleen Lachowicz, by attacking the fact that she played World of Warcraft, pulling a bunch of forum quotes she made a few years ago, and taking them out of context — such as her statement that “I love poisoning and stabbing. It is fun.”
Lachowicz uses salty language in some of the comments, but someone needs to sit the Maine GOP down and explain the difference between fantasy and reality. Every day, millions of people engage in simulated video game violence without committing any real-world violence. By suggesting a World of Warcraft hobby should disqualify someone for office—and implying that voters are too dumb to tell the difference between virtual and real violence—the party is only embarrassing itself.
Later, a spokesman tried to defend the flier, arguing that it raised questions about her work ethic. How? Well, state GOP spokesperson David Sorenson used “the number of hours most World of Warcraft gamers spend playing the game (22.7 per week, on average) and the number it must have taken her to reach such a high level” as some sort of proof that her work ethic is problematic. First of all, using the average amount of time someone plays WoW is meaningless in looking at how much any individual plays. Also, isn’t achieving a high level a sign of a strong work ethic?
Once again, Lee’s response is perfect:
It’s worth noting that the average American watches more than 30 hours of television per week. Many other Americans spend their evenings and weekends at the golf course. Yet it’s hard to imagine anyone suggesting that devoting 22 hours per week to those hobbies made a candidate too lazy to hold elected office.
I realize it’s election season, and with that comes really, really dumb campaign ideas from nearly every political party and/or candidate, but it’s difficult to see how this particular strategy is good for anyone — especially if you want younger people to vote for you. The younger generation tends to respect and look up to gamer politicians. Attacking them for doing something that millions of people enjoy just doesn’t seem particularly smart.
Filed Under: colleen lachowicz, gaming, gop, maine, politics, world of warcraft
Comments on “Maine GOP Apparently Believes That Playing World Of Warcraft Makes You Unfit For Office”
Stupid GOP. DPS stands for Death Panel Services.
in other words, there is someone else that the party wants and she is getting too close in the votes. the only choice left is to either discredit or ridicule her, or both, of course.
I play WoW, a lot.
Having looked at her Rogue (85 isn’t the highest level anymore, nitpick), she was not spending 22+ hours a week playing. She’s an extremely casual player, maybe a couple hours a week tops (if that).
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Whar long-form /played, Lachowicz? WHAR?!
septic tank digger raking up the dirt
this is why vote the person, not the party
*yawn*
Another day, another GOP brain fart.
Wake me when something new happens.
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
They worry she might be to busy to be bought off and pass bad laws.
Clearly she is a lazy person though. This World of Warcraft character demonstrates it beyond a shadow of a doubt.
I mean, she’s playing an Assassination rogue. That’s the easiest spec of the most cheap-sauce class in the game. What a lazy, lazy player.
Now if she was playing a protection warrior or a healer or something though – that would be a different story.
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This guy! He’s never played an Arcane Mage!
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The debate might sound similar to this:
http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2008/03/12
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Goddamn it man what did you have to go and say that? Sigh now I feel like a nerd for finding this so funny.
It’s like when I see honey boo boo on TLC I can just feel my IQ dropping. “However after reading this I feel my Nerd-Q rising.”
Long live Booger!
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Well, it could be worse. She could be playing a Hunter.
Reminds me of children in a playground. Somebody impose some adult supervision on the politicians.
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It is to late for them to learn that way, I suggest shock collars because being stupid should be painful. That way they learn to not do that again… that or we laugh as they keep getting shocked.
*double facepalm*
nuff said
So the GOP decided to help Lachowicz and Democrats win over the WoW players? How very thoughtful of them. There are a lot of independent voters who play, and now the GOP has made it clear to them that they are not welcome in the GOP. Brilliant.
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The GOP is downsizing the party. The big tent had too many different kinds of people in it and it made the uncomfortable.
"the party is only embarrassing itself"
No, it’s not… it successfully finished embarrassing itself ad absurdum quite some time ago.
So that’s why Obama did so badly in the debate!
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That was more likely due to the fact that he’s President and has other things on his mind.
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I’m pretty sure the dude’s staying up too late playing video games. But I suspect he’s more Call of Duty than WoW
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“I’m pretty sure the dude’s staying up too late playing video games. But I suspect he’s more Call of Duty than WoW”
And he gets to play the real live version!
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The live version sucks. Once you’re dead the game’s over forever.
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Psh, not when you’re driving the drones!
It’s just that respawning costs a couple million bucks.
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Like more ways to screw the people.
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Badly? I think it went as planned. Perfectly even. Hold back, offer very few openings, draw out the views, plans and opinions of the opposition, concede a perceived position of strength and comfort and offer little in the way of challenges and contention apart from ensuring your own statements, stances and facts are communicated. Brilliant. The hunt for red November.
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I’d like to think it was planned that way… or maybe like a smart boxer he’s saving his best punches for the last couple of rounds, because those are the ones that stick in the minds of the judges.
I’ve been trying to think of something clever to say, but this kind of douchebaggery from the GOP just makes my head hurt.
If most of these morons in power actually lived in “Our World” over the current fantasy-land they currently live in, then “Our World” would be far better off.
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They cant even step into “Our World” before attacking someone else for playing WoW.
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Hell, if they lived on Azeroth, they’d porobably have more basis in reality.
Can out of state people donate to her campaign?
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Yes.
I hear people in Iran play WoW too…
Connect the dots, folks…
Well she lost my vote, because he plays Horde.
Copyright violation?
Wonder if the GOP bothered to license the orc image they used?
Re: Copyright violation?
This.
In this mindless and brutal battle of the Horde (Democrats) and the Alliance (Republicans) the innocent and pure assassin can only hope not to end in the USTR rogue players list. I say we need to raid those big evil villains but not in heroic mode, I still need that epic staff to boost my dps ;))
Maybe they're right
I dunno, maybe the GOP is right.
Seriously, I can’t ever see myself voting for someone who plays WoW.
I’m a gamer. I play MMOs. I spend a lot of my time gaming.
But seriously, WoW? Don’t want anything to do with that monstrosity of a poor excuse for a game.
/gamer snob
/sarcasm, in case you missed it
It could be worse!
I mean, she plays WoW, imagine if she was into Anarchy Online!
We need a 3rd option party for Azeroth!
I’m guessing the GOP in Maine play Alliance.
GOP spokesperson David Sorenson wishing you could be sued or arrested over your slander.
Next to the Nazi Party and Communist Party I put the GOP on my list of the Political Parties I truly hate.I can not stand these A-Holes.
Everyone in this Nation must Vote this election and you must get your friends/family/fans to Vote.
We must get this Disgusting Party out of our lives.
The GOP = The Varren of Mass Effect.
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The GOP is to the US is what the Muslim extremests are to the Middle East… they want to turn the clock back and take you back to the Middle Ages!
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The other big party’s no better. The Republicrats and the Demopubs both suck.
“Everyone in this Nation must Vote this election…”. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Voting is no solution. Besides that, “everyone in this nation” couldn’t vote anyway, since there are a number of people in this nation who can’t vote (those under 18 and convicted felons, for example).
COLLEEEEEEEN LAAACHOOOWICZ
What is this, the Breakfast Club?
This is just another case of the Sportos harshing on the Neo-maxi-zoom-dweebies. I’ll bet nobody in the GOP has EVER participated in FANTASY footbal.
Wait, that’s a total GOP-ethic pasttime: let the ones at the top (professinoal ball players) excel while those with no atheltic ability sit on their asses and somehow get ahead (with pretend points).
Now, it makes sense!
worst character flaw?
She should be someone for my coworkers from Maine to vote for. Particularly if some time spent on a game was the worst character flaw they could find in her.
Dangerous ground
Sounds like the GOP is treading dangerously close to the crime of “blackening the memory of one who is dead”. One of our recently killed diplomats in Libya was an Eve Online player. Are they suggesting he was lazy or unfit for his post?
Re: Dangerous ground
This tack the GOP is taking is stupid as hell, but if “blackening the memory of one who is dead” was a crime there would be a lot more people in prison, and you’re reallllly stretching trying to equate the EVE player with this lady too.
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It -is- a crime in at least one country…
according to this link.
http://www.reddit.com/r/wow/comments/10xr8s/maine_republican_party_launches_attack_ad_against/
Blizzard formally gave notice for this infringement
Take a look at her brutal-looking Orc avatar. Looks like she’s got what it takes
to handle herself in the Senate.
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A bent for poisoning and stabbing should serve her well.
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Isn’t that how the senate took out Caesar?
I don’t want to live on this planet anymore. /Farnsworth
*Takes a Naaru ship to Azeroth*
Next thing you know, it’s OMG! She’s a witch!!!!
In addition to scaring the grandmas, the politics are aimed at motivating the less-technologically sophisticated segment of the religious right. WoW = D&D = Satan.
Politicians can make false claims about other people, with little consequence.
Yet when normal people do it…. Its slander and taken to court… or sent to the secret prison hidden under Area 53… I mean, Guantani… somewhere if your talking about the president.
Deaths per second?
Seriously? They couldn’t have taken the time to Google what DPS stands for?
Are they trying to lose the WoW vote? Don’t they know 11 million people play that game?
Feat of Strength
Maine has earned:[“New Level of Pettiness!”] FoS
Reward: Title ‘the Crotchety’
Seperation fo Church and State
I play a disc priest. I guess that makes me unfit for office due to the separation of church and state.
Well that means I can’t ever run for office because the thing I did in EVE Online would make them die of shock if playing WoW is enough to cause this much outrage :p
Warcraft
Yea nice. But there coming the new warcraft.