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I didnt really understand why so many 'outside' of the realm of big money power movers 'attached' themselves to FWD.us. Its completely counter to logic, the pu

by apalmer 13y ago

I didnt really understand why so many 'outside' of the realm of big money power movers 'attached' themselves to FWD.us. Its completely counter to logic, the purpose as lobbying as it is today is when a small sized population with extreme financial resources want to influence specific legislature. If you want to influence legislature and you dont have big disproportionate finances at your disposal, dont turn to lobbying. Why a Zuckerberg, or Page, etc have turned to this is one thing... why joe developer with say 100K in the bank is jumping on board is beyond irrational. Number 2, when you are buying politicians, doing it in public view is bound to have negative 'PR' moments, you are buying politicians. Hello. There is a reason this is done in private.

beat 13y ago
It's probably because of a sense that Zuckerberg and his ilk are "one of us" because they're in the same industry we are. That's hardly true; they have very different interests than the average coder. If you're a programmer and want to donate to people defending your interests in the political realm, consider EFF instead.
michaelt 13y ago
Its completely counter to logic, the purpose as lobbying as it is today is when a small sized population with extreme financial resources want to influence specific legislature. I was recently involved with the libel law reform campaign in the UK. A well organised political campaign will often do a bunch of things - they'll decide what they want and produce clear summaries. They'll work out how much opposition this is likely to have and whether their desired outcome is politically feasible. They'll find high profile failings of the current legislation. They'll identify legislators who are likely to be sympathetic and help get a foot in the door. They'll get news coverage. They'll organise rallies where well-spoken people from organisations you've heard of explain what's wrong with current legislation. The speakers will be organised, so all points get covered and there's not too much repition. They'll invite their supporters to invite their representatives to those rallies. They'll look for celebrity supporters. And they probably do a bunch of other stuff behind the scenes that I don't know about because I'm not an expert political campaigner. Isn't hiring organised, experienced people who know how to do this politics stuff what lobbying is? Surely lobbying doesn't just mean ladling out gobs of cash to corrupt legislators?

by apalmer 13y ago

beat 13y ago

It's probably because of a sense that Zuckerberg and his ilk are "one of us" because they're in the same industry we are. That's hardly true; they have very different interests than the average coder. If you're a programmer and want to donate to people defending your interests in the political realm, consider EFF instead.

michaelt 13y ago

Its completely counter to logic, the purpose as lobbying as it is today is when a small sized population with extreme financial resources want to influence specific legislature. I was recently involved with the libel law reform campaign in the UK. A well organised political campaign will often do a bunch of things - they'll decide what they want and produce clear summaries. They'll work out how much opposition this is likely to have and whether their desired outcome is politically feasible. They'll find high profile failings of the current legislation. They'll identify legislators who are likely to be sympathetic and help get a foot in the door. They'll get news coverage. They'll organise rallies where well-spoken people from organisations you've heard of explain what's wrong with current legislation. The speakers will be organised, so all points get covered and there's not too much repition. They'll invite their supporters to invite their representatives to those rallies. They'll look for celebrity supporters. And they probably do a bunch of other stuff behind the scenes that I don't know about because I'm not an expert political campaigner. Isn't hiring organised, experienced people who know how to do this politics stuff what lobbying is? Surely lobbying doesn't just mean ladling out gobs of cash to corrupt legislators?