Republican survey - useful or useless to fill out?

August 12, 2004 8:02 AM

My wife received a survey from the National Republican Congressional Committee which she doesn't want to fill out. She's given the okay to fill it out, but do I REALLY want to do that? [mi]

The first question on the survey regards the amount of money to send to the Republican Party (ha, fat chance). And I'm afraid that if I fill this thing out, my wife will start receiving a crap-load of Republican propaganda. But the idea of telling the Republicans that personal freedom is more important than increased government spending is an opportunity not to be missed. (Oh, I wish you could see this thing.)

posted by grefo to Grab Bag (25 answers total)

They won't listen and you'll just end up getting deluged with propaganda. Fill it out at your own risk.
posted by bshort at 8:08 AM on August 12, 2004

The propaganda could end up being interesting art supplies, if you're so inclined.
posted by PinkStainlessTail at 8:11 AM on August 12, 2004

As it is, Kerry said he would have invaded Iraq, as Bush did.
posted by ParisParamus at 8:14 AM on August 12, 2004

They won't read it, i bet--a volunteer will open it, take a check if there is one, and enter demographic info into their lists. You will get interesting stuff in the mail tho.
posted by amberglow at 8:46 AM on August 12, 2004

Paris - really, cut the shit. AxMe is for questions and answers, not axe grinding.
posted by bshort at 8:49 AM on August 12, 2004

scan it and put it up on the web - I'd really like to see it.
posted by Irontom at 9:09 AM on August 12, 2004

as a once card carrying member of the GOP I can tell you what you are going to get:

NRA lit
GOP themed clothing catalogs
stuff from Playboy
posted by Mick at 9:15 AM on August 12, 2004

Damn, the DNC propaganda doesn't have any naked girls in it; the best thing we get is preprinted address labels with, like, panda bears hugging trees. Maybe that's what we're doing wrong.
posted by ook at 9:23 AM on August 12, 2004

per my husband, who has a masters in political management and has done some work in direct mail, says it is a fund raising gimmick. so totally worthless (and this goes for all surveys, no matter what "side").
posted by evening at 9:26 AM on August 12, 2004

Do what I do with all junk mail. Tear it up (as well as the envelope) and put it back in the return envelope and drop it in the mail (I'm assuming it's post-paid). That way, they pay to deliver junk mail back to themselves and you've given them no information.

If everyone who got junk mail did this with every piece they got, it wouldn't be cost effective for them to send shit out and they'd stop. (I hope.)
posted by dobbs at 9:52 AM on August 12, 2004

AxMe is for questions and answers, not axe grinding.

What if the question is "how do I best grind an axe?" as it seems to be here?

As for the survey, I wouldn't bother. If you're only sending it to tell them off, they certainly won't give a damn.
posted by Krrrlson at 9:59 AM on August 12, 2004

If everyone who got junk mail did this with every piece they got, it wouldn't be cost effective for them to send shit out and they'd stop

If you're going to bother doing this, be sure also to put something heavy in the envelope, too. Make it weigh more than thirty-seven cents' worth of shipping.
posted by interrobang at 10:14 AM on August 12, 2004

I've always wondered about taping the front of one of those envelopes to, say, a brick wrapped in brown paper. I wonder if that's feasible.

A question for another thread, though.
posted by armage at 10:43 AM on August 12, 2004

If everyone who got junk mail did this with every piece they got, it wouldn't be cost effective for them to send shit out and they'd stop

If you're going to bother doing this, be sure also to put something heavy in the envelope, too. Make it weigh more than thirty-seven cents' worth of shipping.

And don't forget to remove anything with your name and/or address on it.

[ /derail ]
posted by deborah at 10:45 AM on August 12, 2004

I gather that neither you nor your wife are Republicans -- so why on earth on you even bothering with this? Just throw it away.
posted by davidmsc at 10:50 AM on August 12, 2004

It isn't really a survey, it is just a fundraising gimmick. Trust me, I get two or three of them every month.


What really irks me is that I received offers to sign up for the "OFFICIAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY VISA CARD" through Providan National Bank, with 1% rebate to help the Democratic National Committee from all of my purchases on the VISA.

I get at least two offers for this, every week! I have no idea how I got on that mailing list.
posted by Steve_at_Linnwood at 10:55 AM on August 12, 2004

Is it anything like this one?
posted by nickmark at 12:04 PM on August 12, 2004

I get all types of rather expensive-looking mailings from the GOP. I have no idea why, since I've never registered as a Republican and in fact my politics tend to be to the left of The Netherlands. My guess is they probably don't target actual voters, but people who meet certain demographic criteria for fund raising. I currently live in a ZIP code which is shared with a large suburban Republican base. I graduated from a conservative law school a few years ago, I have a Neiman-Marcus card, a gift subscription to Bon Appetit, am anglo, and have a household income in the six-figure range. Thus I imagine some combination of factors, along with someone selling my name to a list, made me a Republican "target." Oh yeah, and I'm in Texas!
posted by sixdifferentways at 12:29 PM on August 12, 2004

Yeah, I got one of these too, which is ludicrous if you have any idea about my politics. I'm planning to fill it out and post my responses on my blog.
posted by Vidiot at 1:08 PM on August 12, 2004

For many years I had a subscription to the National Review, in an effort to "see the other side" as it were. I canceled it when the tone become less William F. Buckley Jr. and more Ann Coulter. You should have seen the stuff I used to get. "This Country Needs An Assault Rifle In Every Baby's Crib!" type stuff. OK, that's hyperbole, but not by much...

So no, don't fill it out, unless you really want an avalanch of personal correspondence from Mr. Heston.
posted by jalexei at 1:46 PM on August 12, 2004

When I was a dues-paying Libertarian Party member (ah, my wasted youth) the LP sold my address to all kinds of interesting people. I would have been fairly outraged but I had to admit it was pretty cool when the Cato Institute sent me not one but two pocket-sized copies of the Constitution. They come in quite handy when dealing with law enforcement.
posted by IshmaelGraves at 5:30 PM on August 12, 2004

I've always wondered about taping the front of one of those envelopes to, say, a brick wrapped in brown paper. I wonder if that's feasible.

It's not feasible, unless they're intending for you to send a brick. According to the USPS Domestic Mail Manual, Section 922(1.6) covering Business Reply Mail (BRM):

1.6 Intentions of the Permit Holder

BRM may not be used for any purpose other than that intended by the permit holder, even when postage is affixed. In cases where a BRM card or letter is used improperly as a label, the USPS treats the item as waste.
posted by Wet Spot at 7:17 PM on August 12, 2004

I've been getting RNC spam for the same reasons as sixdifferentways, I suspect.

Like Dobbs, I shred it and return it in their postage-paid envelope.
posted by Zed_Lopez at 11:34 PM on August 12, 2004

19 years as a registered Republican, 15 years as a member of the NRA, and I get nothing. No surverys, no spam, no clothes catalogs, surely nothing from Playboy, nothing at all. Y'all are clearly on the wrong side for avoidance of junk mail, I tell ya.
posted by Dreama at 2:16 AM on August 13, 2004

I have no idea how I got on that mailing list.

*blushes, smiles*
posted by matteo at 8:31 AM on August 13, 2004