Culture War! What is it good for?

Krugman in today's NYT here,

And here's Judith Warner:


I was particularly struck by this observation from Ms Warner:

"Because the Republicans, very clearly, believe that real people are idiots. This disdain for their smarts shows up in the whole way they’ve cast this race now, turning a contest over economic and foreign policy into a culture war of the Real vs. the Elites."

IMHO, the Dems ought to run a series of commercials using the GOP convention as a backdrop. One would have people who are community organizers relating what they've done, inter-cut with Rudy and Sarah laughing at the thought of "community organizers". How will it look when Joe Organizer says "I helped a father of six get a job" is followed by one of those schnooks mocking the concept?

Another would show the clever sniping at the "elites" and the media, then an average guy going "Ha ha, good one", then he looks around and says, puzzled: "But it didn't help me afford college for my kind" or "It didn't help me get a job."

I think if they want to fight a culture war, the thing t do is to keep it focused on the economy, and in fact contrast the culture war to what really matters.