Rabbi Gabrielle's Defiance

by Roger Herst

  The notion that she had already agreed to run had taken root among her tablemates who refused to hear her protest to the contrary. Talk of the upcoming Maryland campaign made her uncomfortable. When she excused herself to visit the ladies room, several eyes studied her limp as though asking how it would appear on television to their state's voters.

  The lavatory provided a moment's privacy to read the handout.

  Truth about Politicstoday.com

  Politicstoday means Third Party Politics

  Underwritten and Supported by Citizens for a New Way,

  The Minorities Alliance, The Immigrants Party, Clean

  Government Slate, The Alternative Way

  Politicstoday skims more voters from the Democratic Party

  Than the Republican Party

  See: JR Edwards Polls of Four Election Results

  Politicstoday owes the sum of $427,544 to the DNC

  See: Annual Accounting: Lazard and Freer, LLC.

  Politicstoday Borrows Unconsciously

  See Federal Bankruptcy Court, Baltimore, Maryland

  Filing Number: 576-88798

  Politicstoday is in Violation of State of Maryland Zoning

  See State of Maryland Injunction, Circuit Court, State of MD.

  RESPONSE TEAM: TO MEET IN CHESAPEAKE ROOM ON CONVENTION GROUND FLOOR

  DURING KYE NAAH'S PRESENTATION. BE THERE!

  Though she had previously cautioned herself to differentiate between fact and political mudslinging, this was not what Gabby wanted to read. On the mountainside, Kye didn't appear as an entrepreneur capable of creating the organization described on the flyer. She decided to withhold judgment until after his presentation.

  No rubber chicken lunch at the Greenbriar. The chefs treated the DNC to sautéed blue crab cakes on a bed of thin penne pasta, which Gabby forked aside. Resisting shellfish, even the redoubtable blue crabs of the Chesapeake, had never caused her undue suffering. Besides, she was more than satisfied with the accompanying salad, cold corn soup and the regional specialty of warm pumpkin muffins. Throughout the meal, the Maryland Democrats pressed their views on how to beat Toby Ryles. Gabby was too polite to declare that she had absolutely no intention of campaigning against a representative (even a Republican!) who had proven herself to be a faithful friend of the Jewish community and the State of Israel.

  During coffee and a medley of painstakingly crafted high-caloric petit-fours, a Senator and three Representatives seated at the head table thanked the DNC for its financial support. Gabby noted how, accustomed to speaking before their supporters, they recycled catchy phrases as though cutting and pasting words on a word-processor. Their speeches were studded with metaphors from television sports, extolling the values of training, winning and good sportsmanship. Gabby asked herself if, by some unforeseen fluke she should run and win, whether her political addresses would sound like that. Meanwhile, waiters swooped down on the tables to collect dirty dessert plates and refill coffee cups before the guest speaker. Aware that many delegates were planning to boycott Kye Naah's presentation, Gabby surveyed the ballroom for signs of their flight to the Chesapeake Room. Occupants of an adjacent table abandoned platters of uneaten petit-fours en mass; Maryland Democrats at Table 27 followed on their heels, leaving Gabby and a lone state senator working the laptop.

  Lyle Carberri hugged the lectern with the air of a man comfortable before a microphone. His eyes hovered over the empty seats and glared at members bunching up to exit the banquet room. A scowl of disapproval replaced his normally jocular smile to convey that Kye Naah was not the only one being shunned.

  An aura of mystery surrounded the 40-year-old guest speaker, about whom a battalion of investigative reporters from the Wall Street Journal and Investors Daily News had failed to uncover more than skeletal details of his private life. His family had emigrated from Pusan, Korea when he was 14. He attended Johns Hopkins University on a scholarship, then the graduate Computer Science Department at the University of Maryland on a grant. Upon earning a PhD, he launched Politicstoday with seed money provided by four Hopkins classmates, carving out a significant online niche in politics before his competition established a foothold. The original investors from Johns Hopkins, more interested in making money than shifting the arena of American politics into cyberspace, pressed Kye to take their company public. In the end, he borrowed heavily to buy out their interests, then mortgaged the website to loyal and enthusiastic employees compensated with stock warrants that might never be issued and just enough salary to pay grocery bills. When expenses exceeded income, Politicstoday stayed alive by seeking federal bankruptcy protection. Kye's dedicated associates remained fiercely loyal, operating their business more like a non-profit commune than a for-profit corporation. No one accused him of milking his company for personal gain, even his irate creditors. He was known to live frugally and take almost no compensation. He always traveled coach aboard commercial planes, lodged in cheap motels and shied away from restaurants with white table clothes.

  Gabby soon learned that not all of Kye Naah's enemies boycotted his presentation. A vanguard remained behind to register their opposition by pounding coffee cups against the tabletops. At first, the noise merged into an ambient growl from the air conditioners, but eventually rose to a level demanding a response from Lyle.

  Off came the director's reading glasses to brandish as a rapier. "All right, friends," he lifted his voice in combat. "We know there are people who take a dim view of how Politicstoday steals our voters. I didn't invite Kye Naah to talk about what cyberspace can do for the independent candidates. He's already demonstrated his capability. I invited him to tell us what the Internet can do for the Democratic Party. Cyberspace presents a challenge I will not let this party ignore. If we don't come to terms with online campaigning, the Republicans will. Can we afford to ignore a technology destined to bury us? I know you're worried how cyberspace will change the way you currently do business. That's understandable. But the brute fact is that without it, our candidates will be out on the street with tin cups in their hands, begging for alms. The storm won't blow over. Your program committee has considered who is the best spokesman. Not a sycophant to tell us how wonderful we are, but a master of information technology to kick us in the proverbial ass. Therefore, I challenge you. If you know all the answers, then go ahead and bang your cups. Or even better, leave now and protest in the Chesapeake Room. But if you think there might be something to learn, I suggest you wait until after Dr. Naah has finished. I've asked him to answer questions at the end. You'll get a chance to register your opinions then."

  Like a guest on a late-night TV talk show, Kye materialized from behind a curtain and bounded up the six steps to the elevated platform. In contrast with those at the head table in sport jackets and open shirts, he wore informal calico Levis and a light yellow T-shirt. His frame appeared thinner than portrayed in news pictures and his stature, taller. A broad face advertised his Korean lineage. Slender lips opened naturally in a manner that gave the appearance of a perpetual smile.

  Lyle was still trying to control his rebellious minions when Kye placed a hand on his shoulder to urge him aside. He deposited a slender laptop on the lectern and, in a fluid movement, flipped open its protective cover. A couple of punches on the keyboard and the logo of Politicstoday, flashed onto an enormous screen behind him, accompanied by digital music with an attention getting beat.

  "Okay, Ladies and Gentleman," he said after testing the lapel mike for amplification through the loudspeakers. "I don't mind heckling. Say whatever you want. Go ahead and bang your cups. But remember, I've got control of the computer and he who controls cyberspace, controls the argument."

  That declaration produced scattered expressions of amusement. Music rerouted through laptop speakers on the tables drowned out the banging of cups.

  "Do me a favor, please," he said. "I think I have strong opposition over on the right. People who wish to register their discontent, please sit in front of your laptops. Then
place your angry teacups before the camera of your laptop. Once I have a cup to wrestle with, will the table monitor please yell out the table number."

  A voice on the right called "Table seventy-four." A few seconds later, additional monitors identified Tables 67 and 18. Kye immediately punched these numbers on his keyboard and an image of a teacup from Table 74 appeared on the giant screen behind him. The images of cups from Tables 67 and 18 showed as insets in the upper corners.

  "That's good," Kye said. "Now, if my critics wish, strike the cup with a spoon. Go ahead, please."

  From Table 74, a knife made contact with the cup. At first the sound was restricted to the table itself, but Kye adjusted his laptop to reroute through the banquet room's loud speakers.

  "Now for a while I'll dedicate part of the screen to my opposition and let the rest of you join in. Talk or bang as you wish. For practice, I'm going to ask everybody at this luncheon to pick up a spoon, strike a cup or plate and let's make a real racket."

  Two or three diners followed the instructions. Eventually, others got into the spirit, including Gabby. Before long, almost everybody was participating in the clatter. Kye let this continue for a full minute, until the exercise struck people as childish. The words TIME OUT NOW Kye typed on his keyboard immediately transferred to the overhead screen. A wagging cartoon finger scolded the last of those striking their cups.

  As sound dropped away, the Politicstoday logo reappeared.

  The computers next carried Kye's voice. "You ask how independent candidates in Alabama's third Congressional District and Oregon's fifth won? I'm no political analyst, but I will share what Politicstoday did to help. Please keep in mind that while we're the largest website, we're not alone. A dozen competitors would love to steal our business. They're planning to offer services either better or cheaper than ours. Here's a sample of what we have been able to achieve and where we think we're going in the future."

  On each laptop appeared a video of Reginald Meredith, then Republican candidate from Alabama's third District. He was walking the deserted runway of a pork barrel airport built in his district by business partners of the incumbent Democratic congresswoman. "Mr. Meredith used this very footage to show what his opponent was doing with their tax dollars in Washington."

  "A short clip like this is low budget and produces results," Kye continued. "Politicstoday can pump video and voice to radio and television stations, utilizing inexpensive off-peak times. This means that when stations lose an advertiser, as they often do at the last minute, or a spot is pulled by a customer for any number of reasons, we can fill it instantly. We maintain a digital library for each of our clients. We don't have to go on location to film a sequence. We just identify a station and, in seconds, send the segment anywhere, almost directly onto television screens. And we go one step further by sharing our database with the media. By means of our proprietary encryption, we let radio and TV stations pull from our servers at their convenience, filling lost advertising spots. Of course, often we get dog positions in the wee hours of the night. But more than occasionally, our political spots show up at prime time with maximum exposure and our candidates pay nearly nothing for this."

  Murmurs of satisfaction emanated in the ballroom.

  A new set of images filled sectors of the overhead screens, one of a middle school classroom where pupils were operating computers. "We've just launched our national education program by providing material for civics teachers in 213 schools. By linking with Politicstoday, students can, absolutely free of charge, study local candidates and – if the candidates subscribe to Politicstoday – open direct, real time communication. The site links to historical information about the issues at hand. When learning about slavery, for example, we have Anthony Hopkins reciting John Quincy Adam's famous speech before the Supreme Court in 1834. On the judicial side, we have introduced links to major court decisions and the famous cases from which these decisions arose, such as Brown versus the Board of Education and Roe versus Wade. Each link comes with video and background text. So far the response from civics teachers has been fabulous. In election-crazy Oregon, we were surprised that the kids went home and got their parents hooked on our web site."

  A dialogue appeared on Kye's screen between seventh grade students in Alabama and the newly elected Reginald Meredith about federal anti-discrimination laws. A link suddenly left the two-way discussion and provided a list of historic legislation dealing with school integration, then a video of Senator Esterbrook barring the doors to Central High School in Jackson, Mississippi.

  "We're now experimenting with online town meetings," Kye flipped to a pilot program in Maine. "Many of the techniques used to integrate two-way interaction between citizen and government are still untested. It's not inconceivable that we will have interactive political meetings from people's homes, a two-way modification of the old one-way Fireside Chats that President Roosevelt used so effectively during the war years."

  Kye Naah's self-assurance intrigued Gabby. She glanced around the tables to observe his skill at holding attention. For the time being, there was no further protest.

  "Technology is a weapon of war," he stated in a flat, authoritative voice. "It is no longer necessary for nations to summon armies on the battlefield. Today, the rifleman is as much a footnote of history as a knight in armor or the US Calvary galloping across the plains to rescue a beleaguered wagon train. Likewise, if politics is war, then the Democratic Party must fight like a modern gladiator, not a twentieth Century pugilist. For the party to win elections, it must be at the cutting edge of the technological revolution, not trailing behind the Republicans who, I can tell you from firsthand experience, are gearing up to capture the Information Highway. I doubt there's a single person at this lunch who wants to be left behind. But for every one with good intentions, there were ten foot-draggers. You either lead with technology or get buried by it."

  Kye left his mike behind at the lectern and sidestepped across the platform leaving an enlarged silhouette of himself on the screen. A menacing teacup remained as backdrop. "The ability to transfer text, voice, and video will make obsolete much of your current campaigning. Who wants to be a fossil?"

  That thought produced considerable mumbling. A spoon struck a cup, but was obscured by Kye's shadow on the screen.

  "Will you organize blocks of votes the old-fashioned way? Of course not. You can't afford to because voting will soon be online and we expect to see a lot more people casting their ballots electronically than visiting the traditional polling booths."

  Back at the lectern, he spoke again into the mike. "And, just for fun, think about the cherished governing body of this land – the United States Congress. It was originally founded in 1777 in Philadelphia where representatives from distant states could meet, parley and pass legislation. Like Parliament in England, the idea was for representatives to discuss current issues of law and policy. In 1777, our forefathers possessed only the written and the spoken word. They argued their business in letters and memos, but when it came to legislating laws, they faced each other and debated eyeball to eyeball. So they convened a congress of representatives in Philadelphia. And you all know how they ended up in Washington.

  "The idea of political negotiation is intrinsic to our system of government. We have a preconceived notion of how government business should be conducted. We're accustomed to sitting around a table to hash out differences. But do we really have to be physically in front of each other in order to carry on an intelligent debate? How necessary is it for elected officials to sit in the august halls of the Capitol and pontificate? When Congress convenes, less than one quarter of the delegates are in attendance; speakers address empty seats. Couldn't the exchange be accomplished more efficiently over the Internet? Wouldn't our leaders be more effective if they stayed near their constituents and conducted their business online? If their role is to represent their communities, what better place? Lobbyists could lobby through the Net. There's no reason why Congress couldn't vote on the
Net. I'm here this afternoon with one message. Despite all you might have heard, the technology for real-time integration of voice, video, and text is here. What isn't in this room is the will to claim it!"

  The ballroom buzzed with mild accord to strong disagreement. A broad-featured woman in a beige silk blouse and red scarf used her desktop computer to confront Kye. Her flushed face, suddenly appeared on the massive overhead screen.

  "A nice little show-and-tell, Dr. Naah, but how do you see this affecting the way we conduct politics?"

  His free hand cupped his chin in a theatrical gesture, palm open, fingers pointed upward, "Well, ma'am, about that I'm not sure. I'm a tech guy. You're the politicians. I create the technology; you put it to work. But I've seen many political campaigns. This isn't meant to be rude or disrespectful, but most are just silly rubbish. Stump speeches are an insult to our intelligence. Politicians repeat the same gibberish night after night. During an election, the public learns virtually nothing, except perhaps the candidate's ability to lie, fib, or spin concepts. If candidates would conduct their campaigns online a lot more people would get involved. The Internet would force them to a level of honesty currently unknown – and at a fraction of today's ludicrous expense. The Info Highway won't eliminate word spinning and issue dodging, but it will reduce them. The possibilities are limitless."

  Listeners were now eager to voice opinion about the threat of dehumanization. Many stood to be recognized from the lectern. Kye's demonstration impressed them, but nobody was fooled. It is also a commercial pitch for his company.

  Gabby took note of the irritation Kye's forthrightness caused. She wondered what kind of reception he expected or whether he just enjoyed being a curmudgeon. Perhaps he was preaching to an old guard incapable of adopting this new technology, reminding herself that Israelite slaves from Egypt had to perish before a new generation was prepared to face building a homeland west of the Jordan River.