The O Men commeth

By Annie Lake

An undercover visit to Obama's ‘Organizing for America' website reveals that His mass following is reaching out for converts and money. The O Men commeth, and a Knock on the Door is heading my way.

I signed into the site using a fake name and gmail account to get a password. Inside the site, I typed in my zip code and discovered several upcoming events near here. On Saturday the 21st, OFA volunteers will meet at a suburban Democratic Party office and a nearby Chicago ward office for "training" and then canvas the neighborhood in a "pledge drive," seeking both new supporters and donations.

"We'll be going door-to-door and covering public places to enlist our friends and neighbors to pledge their support to the President's efforts to revitalize our economy, create new jobs, and invest in the future," the site promises.

Keep in mind, I only typed in one zip code. Presumably, canvassing will be going on in many, many zip codes. The Obots are on the march!

Under my fake name, the site suggests I take action to show my support of O: besides attending the Saturday events, I could host an event, make phone calls, knock on doors, or blog. The site created a page for me, not unlike a Facebook page, where I am supposed to keep a log of my "service" to pump up "my activity index" (currently zero, where it shall remain). Clicking on a "My friends" tab brought up a list of six other volunteers, in case I want to meet more Obots (I don't). Alternatively, I could attend an "economic recovery meeting" at an obscure Evangelical church in Chicago (No, thanks. Jesus and Marxism don't mix).

What "service" for America will I do on March 21st? No doubt, in my heavily Democratic town, the Obots will knock on my door. I guess I could videotape their spiel.

I could also follow the canvassers to see what kind of reception they get. Having copied the Mormon/Jehovah's Witness method of operation, will they get the same treatment? Will doors open, open just a crack, or not open at all even though people are home? Will they succeed in winning more supporters? We shall see.