cartoon goldfish announces campaign for local office
by Dave Brooksher, Feb. 28, 2016
An anonymous satirist (pictured above) from rural Northern California has announced plans to get in on this year's round of hot electoral action by running for the office of Nevada County Supervisor.
"The purpose of this campaign (is) to shape and influence the County's body politic for the better," he said Saturday, through an anonymous social media account. "Because what we have right now is not good."
Fink has made a name for himself, so to speak, as an editor for the Nevada County Scooper. The Onion-style satire site (launched in 2014) initially set out to rock the boat on local issues, but after recent growth in traffic the staff has ventured into topics of broader appeal for a national audience.
One of their more notable local stories alleged that an ISIS terrorist training camp had been discovered in the Sierra Foothills. That piece got picked up as a legitimate news item and republished by a handful of right-wing bloggers who apparently did not get the joke.
http://bansharialaw.com/2015/02/08/isis-training-ground-busted-nevada-county-state-park/
Fink describes himself as a life-long area resident who "has watched as the homeless count has grown and opportunity for youth has declined, as our elders have been forced to leave in search of appropriate housing and care, as viable business has been driven from the community by those tasked with growing economic resources."
His platform is relatively limited in scope at this point. All four planks are listed below in no particular order:
Think Fink also makes repeated mention of an epileptic 8-year-old boy named Silas, whose medical treatment has reportedly been impeded by a ban on outdoor marijuana grows recently imposed by the Board of Supervisors.
More specific talking points and campaign rhetoric have not yet emerged, but that might change in the coming weeks. The "upcoming events" widget on Fink's website says he's scheduled a meet and greet at a Starbucks in Grass Valley at 11 a.m. March 3.
FinkForSupervisor.com also features prominent (but presumably unverifiable) endorsements from both Hillary Rodham Clinton and Donald Trump.
"Randall Finkelstein is not a loser," Trump supposedly said. "He defines success. I love him."
Similar rhetoric can be observed in early user comments on the campaign's freshly generated Facebook page.
"Make Nevada County great, again!" wrote Walter Webb just before 9 p.m. Saturday.
Just how far "Randall Finkelstein" intends to take this is currently unclear. He cannot win a seat on the Board of Supervisors without identifying himself to county officials, which Fink says he does not plan to do. But Think Fink doesn't necessarily need to win the election in order to accomplish the campaign's stated goals.
There's a whole team working on this, according to Fink. And he says he's serious. "In a meta way."
"Outside observers should take this (as) a serious piece of political and social criticism," he said. "Fink is the candidate that everyone would like to vote for."
That remains to be seen, however. Either way, Fink's campaign could impact the outcome of the election. At least in theory.
A moderately successful write-in effort, even one with very limited public support, could split the voter base of a legitimate candidate with ballot access. Nevada County has roughly 61,500 registered voters, which makes it the kind of community where just a few hundred votes might create a so-called "Nader Effect" in a close contest.
"The purpose of this campaign (is) to shape and influence the County's body politic for the better," he said Saturday, through an anonymous social media account. "Because what we have right now is not good."
Fink has made a name for himself, so to speak, as an editor for the Nevada County Scooper. The Onion-style satire site (launched in 2014) initially set out to rock the boat on local issues, but after recent growth in traffic the staff has ventured into topics of broader appeal for a national audience.
One of their more notable local stories alleged that an ISIS terrorist training camp had been discovered in the Sierra Foothills. That piece got picked up as a legitimate news item and republished by a handful of right-wing bloggers who apparently did not get the joke.
http://bansharialaw.com/2015/02/08/isis-training-ground-busted-nevada-county-state-park/
Fink describes himself as a life-long area resident who "has watched as the homeless count has grown and opportunity for youth has declined, as our elders have been forced to leave in search of appropriate housing and care, as viable business has been driven from the community by those tasked with growing economic resources."
His platform is relatively limited in scope at this point. All four planks are listed below in no particular order:
- Fiscal responsibility.
- Economic development.
- "Reeling in" the "overreach" of county Sheriff Keith Royal, described by Fink as a "barracuda" who has "run amok."
- Land use issues and the loosening of medical marijuana restrictions considered onerous by many area residents who spoke out in public comment at a recently scheduled meeting of the Board.
Think Fink also makes repeated mention of an epileptic 8-year-old boy named Silas, whose medical treatment has reportedly been impeded by a ban on outdoor marijuana grows recently imposed by the Board of Supervisors.
More specific talking points and campaign rhetoric have not yet emerged, but that might change in the coming weeks. The "upcoming events" widget on Fink's website says he's scheduled a meet and greet at a Starbucks in Grass Valley at 11 a.m. March 3.
FinkForSupervisor.com also features prominent (but presumably unverifiable) endorsements from both Hillary Rodham Clinton and Donald Trump.
"Randall Finkelstein is not a loser," Trump supposedly said. "He defines success. I love him."
Similar rhetoric can be observed in early user comments on the campaign's freshly generated Facebook page.
"Make Nevada County great, again!" wrote Walter Webb just before 9 p.m. Saturday.
Just how far "Randall Finkelstein" intends to take this is currently unclear. He cannot win a seat on the Board of Supervisors without identifying himself to county officials, which Fink says he does not plan to do. But Think Fink doesn't necessarily need to win the election in order to accomplish the campaign's stated goals.
There's a whole team working on this, according to Fink. And he says he's serious. "In a meta way."
"Outside observers should take this (as) a serious piece of political and social criticism," he said. "Fink is the candidate that everyone would like to vote for."
That remains to be seen, however. Either way, Fink's campaign could impact the outcome of the election. At least in theory.
A moderately successful write-in effort, even one with very limited public support, could split the voter base of a legitimate candidate with ballot access. Nevada County has roughly 61,500 registered voters, which makes it the kind of community where just a few hundred votes might create a so-called "Nader Effect" in a close contest.