Taking aim at one's own foot

We all saw what happened after The Guardian's insane idea to write to people in Clark County, Ohio, urging them to vote for Kerry. How strange that people (especially people from Middle America) would resent being told what to do by foreigners! Anyway, this is from the New York Post. Full disclousre: the Post is a great tabloid that used to pay my wages and for which I retain much affection; it is also a right-wing Murdoch rag.

<<October 27, 2004 -- It turns out that a former New Yorker, one-time David Dinkins press rep Albert Scardino, is behind the stunts that have embarrassed Britain's looney-left newspaper, The Guardian. Scardino is executive editor of the paper, which launched an ill-advised letter-writing campaign to convince Ohioans to vote for John Kerry. The Guardian abandoned the effort last week when it became clear Americans don't like being told how to vote by foreigners and that the campaign was helping rev up the GOP base for Bush. Republican National Committee's Christine Iverson told The Post: "Now if only we could get the French to organize a letter-writing campaign for Kerry." This week, the paper had to apologize when a George Bush-bashing columnist wrote: "John Wilkes Booth, Lee Harvey Oswald, John Hinckley Jr., where are you now that we need you?" Scardino, 55, had a tempestuous 14-month stint in City Hall, which started badly in 1990 when he told the press corps never to address the mayor as "Dave" but always "Mr. Dinkins." He was later quoted in Vanity Fair gloating that City Hall was no longer run by "tired old Jewish men." Scardino, a former New York Times reporter, denied making the remark.>>