Social Media Pendejadas

I feel like a broken record writing a similar post almost every election cycle, but at some point candidates need to get it through their thick skulls.

Social media kills campaigns. 

The last primary election is probably the most egregious example of how social media posts tank a campaign. One judicial candidate had pics on social media with Chapo Guzman's wife that lead to the revelation that she was briefly involved in a case involving the cartel king. Another candidate had posted a tik-tok video that many in El Paso's legal field led to her departure from an appointed bench position. 

And there are probably another 50 examples of stupid things candidates do on social media. 

The best - I mean absolute best you can hope for is for your social media to NOT be a problem. 

You can do a lot with the internet these days - shop, work from home, gaming, education, get your favorite food or adult beverage delivered or hail a ride somewhere. 

But it can't help you win votes. It can only help you lose votes. 

Social media just doesn't leverage votes. It never has and its difficult to see how it ever would. And the answer of WHY it doesn't leverage votes is simple. 

Because social media is not a real place. 

Its fake. Its manufactured. The place where ideally you're in complete control of everything. Where every picture you post, every story you tell, is filtered - and therefore - inauthentic. 

Manufactured. 

I don't know why I have to keep writing this post. You'd figure by now, after so many examples of social media fuck-ups, that people would realize how to avoid social media pitfalls. 

And the problem with social media fuck-ups is that they inadvertently give the voter an insight that is actually genuine. If you lack the good judgement to avoid making self-inflicted wounds in an environment you are 100% in control of, why on earth would I trust you to be in charge of anything as a voter?

I'll give you just a couple of recent examples. I'm gonna do each candidate the favor of not mentioning them by name. 

But seriously, what the hell is it about city council races that always draw out all the weirdos as candidates? I don't get it, its like a massive casting call for people that simply don't belong in office. 

The two examples have to do with what you wear - or don't wear. 

I don't fault any fan of Star Wars. I'm a big fan myself. But sweet baby Jesus, you want people to take you seriously as a candidate - its YOUR job to give them a reason to take you seriously. Dressing like Prices Leia doesn't mean you'd be a good member of the Imperial Senate, much less El Paso City Council. I don't know what goes through candidates' heads when they decide to run for office and don't think to themselves that maybe, just maybe, there might be some cosplay photos what won't exactly inspire confidence in your leadership. 

I know, you're probably wondering what in the ComiCon blue hell ol' LionStar is talking about. Well, I'm glad you asked. I know I make fun of the Westside a lot - but the Westside gives me a lot of material to poke fun at. There is a candidate vying to fill a seat soon to be vacated by City Rep Peter Svarzbein that likes to play Star Wars dress-up. Seriously, a candidate that dresses like Princess Leia (I'm not joking, she really does that - and yes, I have screenshots), thinks people would take her seriously as a candidate.

All though truth be told, I secretly hope she wins because nothing would be more appropriate for El Paso City Council than someone with two matching side-buns being sworn in with a blaster on her hip. 

Oh, and calm down nerds. I know its Comic Con and not ComiCon, but I thought it would be funny to set y'all off about something as silly as that. 

Sticking with the Star Wars theme, the other example seems like it was a decision that came straight from Jar-Jar Binks. A male city council candidate on the opposite side of town posted a video on social media this weekend where he was talking about cleaning his apartment in the nude because he couldn't afford the electric bill to cool off his apartment. 

I mean first of all - what on earth would make someone think documenting cleaning their apartment in the nude and in the heat, would be a good idea. 

It sounds like a really bad OnlyFans side hustle. 

I get it, it was meant to convey the struggle of rising energy costs. But if you're running for office you want people to take you seriously. No one is going to take someone cleaning their apartment naked with their pets around because they are broke. Sweaty and broke - not exactly the visual you want to put in voters' heads. 

No one wants someone in charge of public dollars if they can't manage their funds to the degree that they have to clean their apartment in the nude because of their light bill. 

That doesn't exactly scream financial stewardship. 

The bottom line in the latest (probably not the last) examples of social media mistakes is that they are avoidable. And that goes to the candidate's decision-making. 

And its not flattering. 

-------------------------------------------------------------------

Political "Movements"

Completely unrelated to the two candidates I was speaking about earlier - but there is another dumb thing local candidates do that I want to address. 

If you're running for Mayor, City Rep, Commissioner's Court, County Judge, JP, school board, constable, etc -

Do. Not. Call. Your. Campaign. A. Fucking. Movement. 

No mames, you're campaign isn't a movement. You're not that damn important - and if you think you are, I don't want you representing me. 

Its something you mostly hear from progressives because they like shit Bernie Sanders says. 

But stay grounded and stay humble playa, you're not a movement.

Unless you mean a bowel movement and in that sense you should be regular, predictable, and serve an important function. 

Civil Rights. 

Equality.

Labor. 

Women's Rights.

The Chicano Movement. 

Hell, the fucking Tea Party for that matter. 

Those are movements. 

Your city council race - thats not a movement. Its a job interview to do some pretty basic tasks. 

Don't chase titles. Run to do a job. 

Do the job and do it well.