For those of you who don't know, I am without a job, but have 20+ years experience in sales.
I also tend to the left wing of the political debates.
More important to me than left or right is truth or spin. I am a firm believer in truth and the dangers of spin.
So I answered an ad for a job with "National Write Your Congressman".
Has anyone heard of this organization?
They preport to be a nonpartisan source of congressional information and an organization that encourages people of all political stripes to tell your congressman what you think.
I am all for that. Power to the People!!!
Yet every spin-doctor I've every read or listened too has said that they were non-biased, non-partisan, etc.
This company is based out of Texas, a stronghold of Republican Spin-lords. Their target for selling subscriptions to their newsletter and services are small business owners and professionals. These tend to be more Republican than Democratic. I do not want to work for the Spin Doctors out there, and especially for the more right wing ones. Am I being Paranoid?
So I am checking with you folks. Has anyone heard anything about this group and the type of literature they deliver?
[ March 01, 2005, 10:14 PM: Message edited by: Dan_raven ]
Posted by TomDavidson (Member # 124) on :
Their homepage is www.nwyc.com. It's informative, but badly designed; they could use a facelift. Their "career information" page alone is almost a parody of bad web design coupled with the sleaziest of recruitment presentations.
As a company, they actually appear to provide a number of valuable services, most of which revolve around conveniently packaging information that's already free but often annoying to accumulate -- voting records, copies of the Congressional Review, etc.
I'm not actually worried about partisanship here. I'm worried about sales fatigue. I couldn't actually find any place on their webpage to purchase their service, which sends up warning signals; clearly, they rely on their salesforce, which is the first indication of an overpriced product. Coupled with the ghastly, fungi-of-Yuggoth horror that's their recruitment video/webpage, I strongly suspect that they're one of those companies that rings the little bell every time someone manages to make a sale. They also seem to refer to most of their available positions as "outside sales professionals," which makes me instantly suspicious of their legal reasons for doing so.
I'd be gnawing my leg off at the ankle to get free within a day or two, I suspect. But YMMV.
[ February 20, 2005, 08:50 PM: Message edited by: TomDavidson ]
Posted by Dan_raven (Member # 3383) on :
Yeah, I got those worrisome vibes myself, but I'm holding off until meeting with the regional manager before I write them off.
Posted by TomDavidson (Member # 124) on :
A deep Google turns up evidence that they employ a wide variety of legislative analysts and conduct regular polls of their membership. The poll responses skew conservative, indicating perhaps that their membership is a bit conservative themselves, but I can't see anything suggesting serious bias.
Posted by Scott R (Member # 567) on :
[serious thread derailment]And this, in a nutshell, is why I believe in the Hatrack community.
Bravo, Tom, for your legwork.
[/serious thread derailment]
Posted by aspectre (Member # 2222) on :
More likely, the polling "questions" are skewed to obtain the right answers.
Google "Constituent Communications" and "National Write Your Congressman" and you'll run across another interesting set of "award"ing organizations.
[ February 21, 2005, 02:07 AM: Message edited by: aspectre ]
Posted by Storm Saxon (Member # 3101) on :
Dan, have you ever considered working for radio or television? From what I understand, for radio in particular, they're always looking for sales people.
Posted by Dan_raven (Member # 3383) on :
While this is still an ongoing possibility, today I also met with the true enemy--well, my political enemy--the US Chamber of Commerce.
While they are an admitted lobby group supporting things I am personally against, there is more. As I was about to arrive for the interview, NPR broadcast the following report: Chamber Of Commerce, Questionable Ethics
It seems the leader of the largest cash distributing lobby group may be using the organization for his own personal ends. It seems that the major litigation reform recently passed was originally designed to make it harder for the stock holders in companies to sue the company boards for mismanagement, and the leader of the Chamber is the CEO of several companies (Like Qwest, the only failing baby bell) who's stock holders are seeking to sue for mismanagement.
While he spouts the line about Good Corporate Governance, he continues to increase the pay for CEO's and other top board members by great big amounts even while the companies are failing. He claims that he has created a commision to envigorate the idea of Good Corporate Governance while he has been quoted as ordering that committe to focus on stopping any legislation that would require it.
Basically, he is taking a union of small businesses and turning it into a lobby to avoid responsibility.
But I went to the job interview anyway.
The first thing out of the interviewers mouth was a warning that if we procede they will do their best to check my history to make sure I am an honest and upstanding citizen.
It was hard not to turn around and ask if anyone has done that for their own leader.