Campaign Gist: Buffalo Stance
There wasn’t going to be a Campaign Gist until this happened. Now this is the only thing.
Look, yesterday’s Gist was a long one and I thought we should all take Friday evening off. Maybe have a drink, or enjoy the love of a good lemon drizzle cake.
But then this happened, and I realised I couldn’t not remark on it. Here, in what I promise is going to be one of the iconic images of this campaign, is Micheál Martin climbing onto the back of a buffalo.
This. This is how you win an election. Get on the telly, on every phone, with no questions. Just you and a very placid piece of livestock, memeing it up nationwide.
Every election is about solving problems. Specifically, for every candidate, the problem is “How do I get elected?”
If the solution to that problem involves jiving with Monaghan gift shop owners, or sitting on the back of a piece of livestock like a 19th C Punch cartoon- then you DO it.
If you get elected, you can implement policies or exercise power in circumstances where sitting on top of a buffalo would be counterproductive. Cabinet meetings, for example, or at EU summits. Think of the carpet cleaning bills alone.
But first, you need the votes. And to get the votes you need people to remember you, and hopefully associate you with a neutral to amusing image.
Mark my words, once this plays widely, expect to see Simon Harris sitting astride a donkey, or a particularly burly house cat.
For those of us with long memories for electoral imagery, today’s awkward mastery of cattle by a FF leader was payback long coming.
