The Political Aspirations of Webworm
Don't worry, it's not what you think.
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Hi,
Don’t worry, I am not entering politics.
But it appears two VIPs from the world of Webworm have decided to throw their hats in the ring, haunting me both in the United States and my home country of Aotearoa, New Zealand.
Let me explain.
PSA: I'm very happy to let you know that I've been working with Kiwi artist Jess Johnson to create some new Webworm fashion. And by "fashion", I mean some quite bizarre and wonderful tees that tap into the ethos of Webworm which can be summarised as "quite bleak but also let's have a laugh along the way."
Case 1: Anna Wilding
If you were reading Webworm way back in 2020, you may recall (or not, it was a long time ago) a six part series I wrote called "The Pretender", which documented the decades-long exploits of California-based New Zealander Anna Wilding.
It's hard to know where to start with Wilding.
For me, it started almost a decade ago when she turned up in my DMs offering advice. My reply of, "Thanks! Same back at ya!" was met with a short essay explaining both my ignorance, and her prowess.
She followed that with legal threats, before I found out she'd also tried to sue people involved with the Lord of the Rings films, along with a number of small business owners, one who told Webworm, "We would have paid $10,000 minimum all up to have this dealt with.”
From there I discovered she'd started her own "news" website, managing to become a regular in White House press briefings in Washington, DC. From there Wilding had taken photos of Barack Obama and turned them into a book, before seeking $50,000 in damages from Penguin Random House for "copying her style of shooting Obama at a 3/4 angle".
For some reason Law & Order’s Vincent D’Onofrio started tweeting about Wilding on social media, before she took another wild turn and inserted herself into the Harvey Weinstein #MeToo story.
More recently, she grabbed headlines claiming she'd lost her home in the LA Fires, before it was revealed she'd in fact lost her "future home" – which was yet to be built. Believe me, that's about 1/50th of what I wrote about in the saga.
Now Webworm can report that our favourite fantasist is planning to run for Congress in the 32nd District of California:
Her campaign website is well worth a visit (as are her multitude of other websites including annawilding.org, annawilding.info, annawilding.co.uk, annawilding.world and annawildingfilmmaker.com – you can lose days on this stuff), as she lists her hopes and dreams for America, and explains why Yanks should vote for her:
Anna is a USA citizen brings a robust and uniquely diverse set of executive successes and experiences to the table—spanning government, business, the arts, entertainment, tech, energy sector, crisis management response and disaster relief— positioning her to lead the 32nd district and California through both economic recovery, energy transformation, the 2027 Olympics, tech innovation and environmental and safety concerns.
Her website also has a fundraising section (she accepts up to $3500 USD), and is selling Anna Wilding merch:
The 32nd District of California is a fancy one, taking in the beach mansions of Malibu, as well as LA neighborhoods like Studio City, Bel Air, Sherman Oaks and Brentwood. The last time I was in Brentwood I drove past Gwyneth Paltrow's "Goop" store.
You get the idea.
Case 2: Michael Organ
As if this wasn't enough to take in, Michael Organ – the subject of my 2022 documentary Mister Organ – is also running in the local elections in New Zealand. My documentary traced his history of using the legal system to harass his victims, one of whom he mentally tormented until he took his life.
Since I made that documentary, Organ's apparently decided to get into politics in Whanganui (the city in the film where me and him spent a lot of time hanging out), running for a seat on the Whanganui District Council.
I first reported this with some horror on August 16, noting a number of fake Facebook accounts wading in with full support:
This week Organ released a fairly unconvincing video listing his campaign promises. In it, he stares off to the side of camera, no doubt reading from words scrawled on an antique chalk board in front of him.
"I support the provision of free parking in our retail precinct and the lowering of parking meter fees," he says in the monotone I know all too well. After the events in Mister Organ, I struggle to believe his free parking policy.
"I oppose divisive race-based co-governance" he says, reminding me that he's incredibly, incredibly white.
This statement also reminded me of a photo Organ posted online on February 15. He's sitting in the back of a Council meeting, slumped in his seat, draped in what appears to be an Israeli flag.
On some level, this is sort of amusing – in an incredibly bleak kind of way. Both Anna Wilding and Michael Organ possess a level of arrogance and narcissism that would of course lead them into politics. I'd argue they possess other aspects of the "Dark Tetrad" that makes them even more likely to end up in this space.
A decade ago, I would have been shocked by this. But then Donald Trump happened – and the world changed. He proved that if you march forward through life with enough ego and self belief, you can sell whatever bullshit you want.
And people will buy into it. They'll vote for it.
Look – it's unlikely Anna Wilding and Michael Organ will get anywhere in their campaigns. They're not well-connected enough to those in power, and don't possess the level of charisma or charm needed to win votes.
That said – Wilding somehow got press credentials to enter the White House, and Organ's been manipulating victims for years.
So maybe I should just shut up and not jinx this already cursed situation.
David.
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