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I supported Lessig's presidential campaign monetarily, even though I never thought he had a snowball's chance and also didn't think that his model of affecting

I supported Lessig's presidential campaign monetarily, even though I never thought he had a snowball's chance and also didn't think that his model of affecting change was fully thought through. As entrepreneurs, I think many of us can sympathize with the idea of knowing that there is a huge, massive problem that needs to be fixed, without necessarily having the solution fully formed. It would have been so easy for Lessig to coast on the reputation of his extraordinary work with Creative Commons [0] and his professorship at Harvard. Instead, he (IMHO correctly) identified one of the greatest challenges of our time, political corruption. His first proposed solution, the MAYDAY PACn [1] (A SuperPAC to end SuperPACs), was a brilliant idea and an abject failure. So was his second, which was this presidential campaign. It is incorrect to say that he never had a chance, since you can see how close he was in polling [2] to qualifying for the debate, and getting into the debate would have had a huge impact on awareness of his ideas and potential solutions. I do complain that he had fallen for the Green Lantern Theory of the Presidency [3], instead of understanding the complexity required for real change. But, I give him huge props for trying both of these approaches, and I can't wait to see what his third attempt to take on political corruption will be. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creative_Commons_license https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creative_Commons_license [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mayday_PAC https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mayday_PAC [2] http://elections.huffingtonpost.com/pollster/2016-national-democratic-primary#!maxpct=60&mindate=2015-09-01&smoothing=less&showpoints=yes&estimate=custom&selected=Biden,Clinton,Lessig,Sanders http://elections.huffingtonpost.com/pollster/2016-national-d... [3] http://www.vox.com/2014/5/20/5732208/the-green-lantern-theory-of-the-presidency-explained http://www.vox.com/2014/5/20/5732208/the-green-lantern-theor...

tptacek 11y ago
Serious question: given that he didn't have a snowball's chance, why did you give him money, as opposed to giving money to some other change agent that does have a chance?
- JoeAltmaier 11y ago
  Sometimes its about sending a message. After all, its not a horse race; you don't win any prize by backing the winner.
  - tptacek 11y ago
    Is that why you supported Lessig?
    - JoeAltmaier 11y ago
      That's why I support {whomever}. Marginally my vote/money is worth more by supporting an outlier.
  - devNoise 11y ago
    I don't win a prize for backing a winner. Though I feel that there are some of the 1% that put big money in the race and expect a prize.
- jasim 11y ago
  Democracy is an information system - it is not just about politics, it is an approximation of a society's needs, wants, and its moral zeitgeist. Voting is how we add information into this. Who wins or loses in one election is based on its instantaneous value. But this system has long oscillation times. Some may vote to signal long-term wishes (Lessig), some short-term (Sanders). Both choices I guess are fine.
- dankohn1 11y ago
  > Serious question: given that he didn't have a snowball's chance, why did you give him money, as opposed to giving money to some other change agent that does have a chance? @tptacek, I thought of funding Lessig as what an angel investor would describe as exploring the problem space. That is, I believe he has correctly identified a huge problem, I knew he was a smart guy who would adapt to what he learned, and I was happy to support that exploration. I'm also comfortable with him pulling the eject lever once he couldn't see a path to moving his goals forward. I will admit to seeing a relative dearth of alternative change agents.
- webmasterraj 11y ago
  I gave him money, and I didn't think he had a chance to win. I just wanted to see what happens. Even though it failed, it was an interesting experiment (exhibit a, number of upvotes and comments here). Definitely worth my $20.
- jfager 11y ago
  "as opposed to"? People only have one money? I threw $n at a shot to get an honest, articulate voice on stage at an early-primary-season debate, to hopefully influence the party/eventual candidate's agenda. It didn't work. Oh well. I have a $500 iPad sitting on my coffee table gathering dust, too, which was the bigger waste?
- akulbe 11y ago
  There are no other change agents. Everyone else is just more of the same. Career politicians. It's going to take someone who doesn't go with the flow, to make any real, lasting change. Inertia is a bitch.
danielodio 11y ago
Same here on all counts!
Bud 11y ago
Getting into the debate would have had a huge impact? I disbelieve. I think it reflects poorly on Lessig's judgment that he even considers himself qualified for the Presidency. If he wants to advance a view on a single political issue, running for leader of the free world is kinda overkill, and there's also no evidence that him becoming President would have the slightest impact on the issue Lessig cares about, unless he also plans to magically abolish the Republican House. He has no political experience, and it sure shows. He should have tried running for the House, or even the open Senate seat in CA.
- slacka 11y ago
  > huge impact? I disbelieve. Of course he could have. Every debate has a huge impact on the news coverage and national discourse for days afterward. Bernie is forcing Hillary outside of her establishment comfort zone, just today saying she'd let "big banks fail". If Lessig's was in 2nd we'd be hearing a lot more talk of Super PACs/Citizens United. > Lessig's judgment that he even considers himself qualified for the Presidency.... has no political experience Compared to Trump, a bully and intellectual lightweight. Or Carson, a neurosurgeon who promotes in creationism? His poor judgement was not running, but saying he'd quit after he accomplished his goal. No one could take him seriously talking like that, and he even later admitted it was his biggest mistake.
RealGeek 11y ago
Even though he didn't have a chance in the Presidential race. If he built a serious campaign, he could have made an impact in the debates and push for change. I support his work and message, but even I couldn't take his campaign seriously because of his plan to resign as President after elections and campaign reform. Bernie Sanders may or may not get the nomination; but regardless, he is making a big impact in the debate and influencing the agenda.

tptacek 11y ago

Serious question: given that he didn't have a snowball's chance, why did you give him money, as opposed to giving money to some other change agent that does have a chance?

JoeAltmaier 11y ago
Sometimes its about sending a message. After all, its not a horse race; you don't win any prize by backing the winner.
- tptacek 11y ago
  Is that why you supported Lessig?
  - JoeAltmaier 11y ago
    That's why I support {whomever}. Marginally my vote/money is worth more by supporting an outlier.
- devNoise 11y ago
  I don't win a prize for backing a winner. Though I feel that there are some of the 1% that put big money in the race and expect a prize.
jasim 11y ago
Democracy is an information system - it is not just about politics, it is an approximation of a society's needs, wants, and its moral zeitgeist. Voting is how we add information into this. Who wins or loses in one election is based on its instantaneous value. But this system has long oscillation times. Some may vote to signal long-term wishes (Lessig), some short-term (Sanders). Both choices I guess are fine.
dankohn1 11y ago
> Serious question: given that he didn't have a snowball's chance, why did you give him money, as opposed to giving money to some other change agent that does have a chance? @tptacek, I thought of funding Lessig as what an angel investor would describe as exploring the problem space. That is, I believe he has correctly identified a huge problem, I knew he was a smart guy who would adapt to what he learned, and I was happy to support that exploration. I'm also comfortable with him pulling the eject lever once he couldn't see a path to moving his goals forward. I will admit to seeing a relative dearth of alternative change agents.
webmasterraj 11y ago
I gave him money, and I didn't think he had a chance to win. I just wanted to see what happens. Even though it failed, it was an interesting experiment (exhibit a, number of upvotes and comments here). Definitely worth my $20.
jfager 11y ago
"as opposed to"? People only have one money? I threw $n at a shot to get an honest, articulate voice on stage at an early-primary-season debate, to hopefully influence the party/eventual candidate's agenda. It didn't work. Oh well. I have a $500 iPad sitting on my coffee table gathering dust, too, which was the bigger waste?
akulbe 11y ago
There are no other change agents. Everyone else is just more of the same. Career politicians. It's going to take someone who doesn't go with the flow, to make any real, lasting change. Inertia is a bitch.

danielodio 11y ago

Same here on all counts!

Bud 11y ago

Getting into the debate would have had a huge impact? I disbelieve. I think it reflects poorly on Lessig's judgment that he even considers himself qualified for the Presidency. If he wants to advance a view on a single political issue, running for leader of the free world is kinda overkill, and there's also no evidence that him becoming President would have the slightest impact on the issue Lessig cares about, unless he also plans to magically abolish the Republican House. He has no political experience, and it sure shows. He should have tried running for the House, or even the open Senate seat in CA.

slacka 11y ago
> huge impact? I disbelieve. Of course he could have. Every debate has a huge impact on the news coverage and national discourse for days afterward. Bernie is forcing Hillary outside of her establishment comfort zone, just today saying she'd let "big banks fail". If Lessig's was in 2nd we'd be hearing a lot more talk of Super PACs/Citizens United. > Lessig's judgment that he even considers himself qualified for the Presidency.... has no political experience Compared to Trump, a bully and intellectual lightweight. Or Carson, a neurosurgeon who promotes in creationism? His poor judgement was not running, but saying he'd quit after he accomplished his goal. No one could take him seriously talking like that, and he even later admitted it was his biggest mistake.

RealGeek 11y ago

Even though he didn't have a chance in the Presidential race. If he built a serious campaign, he could have made an impact in the debates and push for change. I support his work and message, but even I couldn't take his campaign seriously because of his plan to resign as President after elections and campaign reform. Bernie Sanders may or may not get the nomination; but regardless, he is making a big impact in the debate and influencing the agenda.