Quick Hits — August 5, 2008

• Update: Wal-Mart’s clumsy, self-defeating attempts to influence Washington.
• Update: Matt Stoller and Patrick Ruffini on the Kojo Show.
• Update: McCain Pushed Iran Issue in June Web Ads. The online war continues.
• Obama and McCain’s blogs are really both about Obama, via PoliticalWire.
• On the drill-now Twitter frenzy, plus more from TechRepublican and updates here and here. C.f. #dontgo: A Turning Point for the Right.
• NASA confirms liquid (hydrocarbon) lake on Saturn’s moon Titan. I’m going to guess that this counts as beyond the Outer Continental Shelf.
• Media: Tweets, Blogs and Leaves. Reporters + Twitter, via Margot Friedman.
• McCain’s No “Boy Wonder,” but Holds His Own on the Web. One day someone’ll spell my name right.
• The Newest YouTube Stars: Campaign Managers.
• Wilkerson harnessing the Google. Google Ads in a state senate race.
• Take that, Obama: McCain One-Ups Olympic Buy.
• Tracking a smear: Obama “snubbed” wounded soldiers because there were no media or “cameras”. On the ease of manufacturing “truth.”
• An anthropological introduction to YouTube.
• Does real change only happen offline? And some push-back.
• Comparing the cost of buying Google AdWords on the candidates’ names. Via TechRepublican.
• Rebranding via Blogging. Friend-of-e.politics Jon Henke talks about TheNextRight.
• Nancy Pelosi Talks Tech at Netroots Nation. An interview with friend-of-e.politics Sarah Burris.
• Why the French love Obama — note the guilt-soothing motif again, and also the fact that Robert Capa’s D-Day photo editor(!) is discussing a Paris Obama meetup. Via Chris Cosart.
• Missed Connections at Obama.com. Grab those alternate URLs!
• Perspctv: An Election Mashup That Proves Nothing, But Looks Good Doing It.
• How To Photoshop Propaganda.
• Even Lamer Than Second Life: Google Lively, yet another pointless virtual world.
• AstroTurf Watch. On the watering of artificial grass roots.
• The rise of the Bauer Doctrine. Turns out, the legal basis of our anti-terrorism policy is a TV show. Surprise!
• Material that turns heat to power gets efficiency hike. Multiply by thousands and you’ll have the kind of inventions that’ll power the efficiency revolution. Next step: let’s go on a diet. First, though, How China’s cars will kill us all — who knew Buick had so much street cred in Shanghai? But wait, there’s more: Could China lead the green revolution?
• Inconvenient question: How Much Does John McCain Really Know About Foreign Policy?
• Babies for Sale: Teaching Brangelina and other celebrities how to be better economists.
• Constituent e-Relationships. Julie Germany gives a Presentation.
• Blogger Gorshkov Will Dish Dirt on Russian Politicians — for a Price.
• GOP Site ‘Barackbook’ Mocks Obama’s Facebook Support. C.f. R.N.C. Deletes Comments on Obama Parody Site.
• McCain Campaign Yanks ‘Obama Love’ Web Video.
• McCain Campaign’s Obama-Britney Video Spurs A Backlash Online.
• Kansas Senator Blasts Chinese Government For Ordering Internet Surveillance. Hypocrisy check: Hey Brownback, didn’t you vote for FISA surveillance on American citizens? C.f. Opposed to Wiretap Amnesty? Run a TV Ad for Six Bucks.
• Inside Professor Obama’s Classroom — crowdsourcing his class notes.
• Comedy Central Accepts (MoveOn) Political Ad.
• GOP Launches a Docu-Parody of Obama in Berlin. C.f. RNC Presents Hasselhoff and Obama, in Living Color.
• Obama Backs Larry Craig? Going for the men’s room vote, clearly.
• Kaine Domain Name Points to Potential GOP Successor.
• Geek [Fundraising] Power.
• Rock the Mullahs: Can heavy metal help transform the Middle East?
• The Amazing Obama Money Machine. Almost missed this one.
• Hollywood Has Finally Figured Out How to Make Web Video Pay.
• Why America is f*cked, from a design point of view. Dude, this guy’s worked up! Via Apollo Gonzalez.
• Finally, the Army is promoting the right officers. Took ’em long enough.
• The Drug War’s latest recruit: Turtle Tracks Down Marijuana Field In Rock Creek Park. Not the wee turtles! (Boxless, don’t get any ideas.)
• Dinosaur evolutionary tree unveiled. Oh dear, Aunt Emma was a pterosaur?

– cpd