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I happened to be watching a live feed of the session at Google's headquarters in Mountain View, Calif., and at that moment the employees watching the event were stunned into silence. The purity of Thompson's cluelessness was breathtaking, an Everest-level summit in the annals of missing the point. (The best possible YouTube campaign video, of course, would have been the candidate sitting on a bed, à la lonelygirl15, talking off the cuff to a Web cam.) Even the moderator of the debate, Anderson Cooper, was thrown off his game. After a second or two when he tried to craft a response, he finally burst out, "Senator Thompson, what's up with that?"

Making a clever YouTube video should never be a requirement for public office, but knowing how technology affects the lives of Americans, having an idea how to keep American businesses competitive in the digital age, and being able to use technology to increase the productivity and transparency of government are essentials for anyone who hopes to lead this country. A recycling plan for those blinking VCRs would be a bonus.

© 2008

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  • Posted By: OH_4FDT @ 02/26/2008 1:39:38 PM

    I totally disagree with your assessment of Fred Thompson's web presence. In fact, it seems you are uninformed to make such an asessment. I think you'll find evidence upporting this statement in the link below.

    http://www.techpresident.com/blog/entry/20308/fred08_com_an_outside_insider_s_view

    Research is a wonderful tool when writing an article!

  • Posted By: Winghunter @ 02/26/2008 1:12:40 PM

    Cherry picking your examples is a form of spin and therein dishonesty Steven...shame on you.

    You don't bother to mention Thompson's mastery of the internet and Youtube clips starting long before his run for the presidency. Podcasting his comments on Paul Harvey and later filling in for him when Harvey took a vacation and for ABC Networks; Youtube video clip of Thompson taking Mikey Moore to school about Castro and Cuba; Blogging articles and instructions of conservatism at places like Redstate; Further instructions and full detailed plans on a Flat tax plan, illegal immigration and every other main conservative issue.

    In fact Stevey, you've now proven yourself as ridiculously clueless by either ignoring the incredible presence Fred Thompson created on the internet or incapable of performing simple searches to find out what he had.

    Pretty pathetic either way son...get a clue.

    Fred Thompson had long since mastered internet communication

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