That's What They Need Joe For

He's Joe Biden and he did NOT approve this ad.

The Democratic veep candidate told CBS's Katie Couric last night he thought a campaign ad that stingingly mocked John McCain for being a computer bonehead was "terrible."

"I didn't know we did it and if I had anything to do with it, we would have never done it," Biden said.

Atlantic.com noted the biting ad stated:

"He admits he still doesn't know how to use a computer, can't send an e-mail, still doesn't understand the economy, and favors 200 billion in new tax cuts for corporations, but almost nothing for the middle class."

It reminds me of how the Israeli Labor Party lost whatever support they had of Israeli's "amcha," the "ordinary, non-elite" Israeli. This was when Menachem Begin was PM and running for re-election. At a Labor rally, someone made fun of the "riff-raff" who supports Begin.

Just recently I mentioned to someone that there really are people who don't own or very rarely use computers. She was amazed, insisted that I was wrong. But I'm not. I mentioned it among neighbors, and was told that even when there's a computer in the house, it's not used by everyone.

It's important for us to remember that there are other ways of communicating and not everyone is online.

Back to this miscalculation by the Obama camp. I just wrote that he's elitist. I doubt that all of his supporters are, but the people running the campaign are making mistakes. McCain and Palin are of the American "amcha," and even black "amcha" may feel alienated by the time they have to pull the lever.