McCain is ‘Aware’ of the Internet

This is a bit old, but amazing. Presidential candidate John McCain does not know how to use a computer; he asks his wife for help.

"Mr. McCain is a man who aspires to lead the largest economy in the world and yet recently admitted that he doesn’t know how to use a computer, the one modern tool shared by everyone from the post-industrial American work force to Middle Eastern terrorists to Pixar animators. Getting shot down over Vietnam may not be a qualification for president in 2008, but surely a rudimentary facility with a laptop is."
- Frank Rich, "Wall-E for President" (New York Times - July 6, 2008)

"'John McCain is aware of the Internet... This is a man who has a very long history of understanding on a range of issues.'
- McCain aide Mark Soohoo (via Ben Smith, "The Google", June 23, 2008)

"As the father of young men and women ranging from 16 to 23, I understand from them not only their issues but how important and vital a role the Internet plays."
-McCain himself

"Understanding that your daughter is addicted to posting pictures of herself and her friends taken while riding in your private jet or knowing someone who is an eBay fanatic doesn't really translate if you don't have the frame of reference to understand the way in which that connectivity matters and the broader implications it has for the way in which we live our lives each day. It doesn't translate into understanding the incredible possibility of large-scale social change organized because the tools were freely available online and anyone could step up and use them.

But it was a nice try."
- Tracy Russo, "It's still not Enough" (TechPresident - June 17, 2008)

http://216.87.173.33/media/2008/0806/cnn_mccain_computer_illiterate_080626a.flv