The word “boycott” came into use in the late 19th century. Its origin traces to Charles Boycott, an English land agent who refused to lower rents in Ireland. The Webster’s definition is “to engage in a concerted refusal to have dealings with (as a person, store, or an organization) usually to express disapproval or to force acceptance of certain behavior.”

The rule of thumb here in America is that boycotting conservatives is a good thing (remember Dr. Laura?), but boycotting liberals is a violation of the First Amendment. It’s fascist and intolerant. To boycott Bruce Springsteen may seem the height of absurdity to the cultural elite, but to anyone monitoring the Senate race in New York, it’s nothing short of brilliant.

Before this ad advocating a boycott of Springsteen music, few had heard much of the Conservative Party candidate, Dr. Marilyn O’Grady, who is running last in the race to unseat Senator Schumer.

His Republican opponent is Howard Mills, who is as liberal as Mr. Schumer on many social issues and isn’t receiving much support from Albany. Defying the Republicans, the Conservative Party decided to run a bona fide conservative, Dr. O’Grady, but it’s been a tough battle getting the word out in the mainstream press.

Dr. O’Grady’s 30-second ad criticizes singer Bruce Springsteen’s upcoming anti-Bush concert and reminds us that Mr. Springsteen urged that President Bush be impeached. Springsteen thinks, Dr. O’Grady says, that just because he earns millions doing a song and dance routine he thinks he can tell us how to vote. She ends the ad saying, “Here’s my vote. Boycott the Boss. If you don’t buy his politics, don’t buy his music.”

News of the Bash Bruce ad, which will hit Staten Island next week on cable shows, also made the Drudge Report andLucianne.com, one of the most heavily trafficked Web sites. If enough donations come in to her Web site, www.voteogrady.com, these ads may run on cable stations in other boroughs.

I’ve always been anti-boycott because this tactic usually grants undeserved publicity to the cause being boycotted, but this ad is nothing short of ingenious. It has focused attention this time on the little-known candidate and what she has to say is what many conservatives want to hear.

Already posters on the Lucianne site are offering to donate to her candidacy. The ad appears on Dr. O’Grady’s Web site, which also makes donations fairly simple. Is this how Howard Dean got started?

I met Dr. O’Grady briefly at the Ball for Life in May, when Michael Long, head of the Conservative Party, introduced me to her. We exchanged business cards and I had intended to contact her sometime before the election. But I just had to learn who had the idea for the Boycott Bruce ads that have managed to turn the spotlight on Marilyn O’Grady, the ophthalmologist from Long Island.

It turns out the inspiration for the ads may have come from “the Boss” himself when he decided to set up this dump Bush concert tour. It was the last straw for Dr. O’Grady.

She said, “I am sick and tired of celebrities using their popularity to attack our president. And when Springsteen set up these concerts in the battleground states in an all-out effort to dump President Bush, I’d had enough. I support the president. I support the war on terror. I stand by the ad and I am proud to defend the president.”

This isn’t the only ad that the Conservative Party candidate has on her Web site. Another political video charges that Mr. Schumer has a problem with people who have “deeply held religious views.” The ad states that Schumer has continually blocked practicing Catholics from serving on the federal bench. The mainstream press wasn’t very interested in an ad addressing serious issues that reflect negatively on Mr. Schumer’s record.

But when a show-business personality enters the controversy, the newshounds’ ears pick up. As cynical of publicity campaigns as I am, I found Dr. O’Grady’s outrage about the Springsteen tour to be sincere and she appears to be surprised but grateful for the attention it’s received.

Mr. Schumer has a huge campaign chest, which can buy him a lot of television ads, but he is still vulnerable on several issues. Because of his virulent campaign against Miguel Estrada’s judicial nomination, his record could be viewed as anti-Catholic and anti-Hispanic. If Dr. O’Grady succeeds in raising the funds to challenge his spotty record, she can thank the “Boycott Bruce Springsteen” ad.

Of course, Bruce Springsteen has the right to speak his mind, but he is going way beyond having a personal opinion.

I have no doubt that he is an intelligent man, but he is allowing his ego to blind him to the possibility that he may not have all the information needed to frame governmental policy, much less to unseat a sitting president in the midst of a dangerous war. He is not in the loop. He does not get screenings from senior intelligence officers or foreign dignitaries. For goodness sakes – he is just a singer.

I’m tempted to go out and buy my first Kiss record. Lead singer Gene Simmons has declared himself to be a Bush supporter, but said he might vote for Mr. Kerry – as president of France!