Strange isn't it--we here regularly discuss some rather complex stuff, and for the most part understand one another, and then up pops something simple, and we misunderstand. 

You missed my point, apparently; and I in turn do not I understand you misunderstanding! Are you asking (1) "Why use a petition" or (2) you don't understand the mechanism I described?

The strategy, I would have thought, was self-evident (silly me!). You asked me to join you in a request to CC to up the character limit; so I would have thought the idea of getting a huge number of users to joint you in requesting the change via a petition would have been sympatico. 

Or was it the mechanism that I didn't describe adequately???