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Netiquette For Dummies (Tancredo, This Means You!)


The downside to being on just about every political e-mail list I can find is that I see some really bad examples of campaigns violating basic rules of Netiquette. Chief among these violators is Tom Tancredo’s campaign and their ridiculous insistence that every e-mail subject be written in all caps. From the IETF RFC:

Use mixed case. UPPER CASE LOOKS AS IF YOU’RE SHOUTING.

It’s a simple rule, and one which most people have learned and internalized. Rarely do you see people sending messages in all caps unless they are a) new to the Internet or b) fully aware of what caps mean and pissed off. The two exceptions to this seem to be Tom Tancredo and a certain former Chairwoman of the New Mexico GOP (whom I served briefly as the ED).

I used to get these rambling all cap messages from her when she thought something was important. She would often copy the RNC’s RPD for the state as well. One afternoon he and I had a long conversation about that fact that both of us, on separate occasions, had sat her down and explained the all caps rule. No matter…. She continued to send her raging missives for no readily apparent reason.

Tancredo’s base may be slightly unhinged anyway, so it’s possible they haven’t noticed that his e-mails come across like he’s a lunatic. Screaming at your supporters is a strange tactic, even if you are worked up about the topic du jour. I would urge Tancredo, if for no other reason than out of respect for the traditions of the ‘Net, to lay off the all cap subject lines. It makes your campaign look less than serious when you can’t adhere to even the simplest rules of common courtesy.

(see image of his ranting e-mail after the jump).

Tancredo's ranting subject lines



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Written by Michael Turk