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Here's an idea I've been playing around with for a while now: A citizens lobbying service. It could be an independent non-profit allied to other non-profits li
by Digit-Al 8y ago
Here's an idea I've been playing around with for a while now: A citizens lobbying service.
It could be an independent non-profit allied to other non-profits like EFF. When one of these non-profits wants to run a campaign against a bad law being enacted they can run a "campaign". They can explain why it is bad, just as they currently do, but as well as asking people to write to their local government representative they can also ask for donations to the campaign. These donations would then be used by professional lobbyists to lobby in the same way large organisations do.
It's probably a stupid idea, but I feel like it has the germ of something useful.
- dragonwriter 8y agoNonprofits already collect money (both in general and tied to specific efforts) and hire professional lobbyists to advocate for their causes. What is the third-party service doing here besides adding extra overhead?
- jackofall1 8y agoYeah, we would need some kind of organization that lobbies according to the public's will. Of course people shouldn't just be able to join this organization and take over the reigns, so they would need to be voted in. Let's say each region of a country will have a couple of candidates and regular votes are held on who will get to join the organization for a limited time. With this organization in place, we will finally be able to truly voice the people's opinion and act on their behalf! There is something though about that idea that I cannot pinpoint. It somehow feels vaguely familiar. If I could just figure out how...