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How involved should one be with political parties?

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I've been reading on this forum on threads similar to the question. I understand the idea behind supporting something versus voting for the least damaging outcome.

 

I live in Alberta and we are in the midst of an election. Right now it's a dead heat between three parties NDP (Left), Progressive Conservatives (Middle) and Wild Rose (Right).

 

None of these parties are Objectivist (obviously), but two of these parties will raise my taxes if elected. The NDP will raise corporate taxes and introduce a progressive taxing system, as they feel the rich are getting off easy with the current flat tax in the province. The Progressive Conservatives (PC) are the party in power for decades now, they just introduced a budget to the population that shows increased taxes on the 'rich', a new health levy for people making more than $50k/year and a variety of other user fees/sin taxes (ie: increase tax on gas, increase tax on alcohol, increase cost of registering vehicle, etc). The called an election in order to get a mandate to pass this bill.

 

The only party left is the Wild Rose, which have no plans to raise taxes.

 

The Wild Rose Party is not perfect or aligned completely with me, but I really like the money I earn. The more I have in my pocket, the better.

 

The question becomes how far should one go working with a non-ideal political party? And what I mean by working with would be like donating to the campaign, volunteering with the campaign, attending functions, etc.

 

Thoughts on this would be most welcome.

 

Edit: I apologize if this is in the wrong section.

Edited by Capitalist Chris
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I would sternly advise not sending any donations to any political party. If you want to bribe a legislator, buy them a vacation villa in the Caymans, or some such location. And depending on the ranking of the official, that may be only a down payment. No politician has any intentions of working with you, but if you want one to work for you, it will cost you plenty. They'll get your money either way. Depending on the line of business or work you're in, you are better off taking the hit like any average taxpaying victim.

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Well, it isn't a bribe. It's to help with funding election operations.

 

I'm trying to figure out the fine line between doing what is in my best interest without 'supporting' an organization that isn't fully aligned with my views. I understand that most Objectivists will vote for the lesser evil, but is that the limit? How far can one go?

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Well, it isn't a bribe. It's to help with funding election operations.

 

I'm trying to figure out the fine line between doing what is in my best interest without 'supporting' an organization that isn't fully aligned with my views. I understand that most Objectivists will vote for the lesser evil, but is that the limit? How far can one go?

I don't know anything about the Wild Rose party, but if they're actually a mixed party, with a few things better than others, a few things worse and nothing seriously wrong (e.g. thinking that God should be the fount of the constitution), then I would not have the particular type of concern you're expressing. My concerns would be more on the lines of: is it worth it to spend my money on these folk?

I understand the feeling that you want to do something. "Those who fight for the future live in it today" (Rand Quote, from memory...so could be inexact.) Even if one know one's party has no chance of winning, one can feel less like a sheep standing by and letting things happen, if one gets involved. if it is not a sacrifice in terms of time and effort, my suggestion would be: get involved, rather than just donating money. Dive in with as low a commitment as you think you want to risk, and see how it goes. If it does not pan out, no big deal: it would be a lesson learnt.

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Thanks for the reply softwareNerd. The Wild Rose isn't crazy religious, but again, it's a right wing party. That seems to attract the more religious people, though that's not any plank within the party.

 

The way the election is shaping up is that we have a virtual three way tie and I'd prefer to give a 'nudge' to the Wild Rose as they're the only party not calling for higher taxes. You're right, I want to do something because it could very easily fall to the other parties.

 

I'm just trying to figure out the fine line with political parties. I have been looking at the activism section of the forum and it helps.

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If you really want to help them, sending them a few bucks probably has little impact anyway. If you can switch one friend to vote for them, you'll probably be doing more than a small donation would. If you canvass a few hundred homes and manage to get some conversations going, that too is probably worth more than a small donation. Something like canvassing of cold-calling is time-consuming, and it depends on your inclination: you might not want to do it, or you might find it to be a learning exercise.
 

I'm just trying to figure out the fine line with political parties.

What's the worst that can happen if the party you support wins? Sounds like the answer is "nothing seriously bad", and probably "nothing that the electorate won't reverse next time if its more than they bargained for". So, there seems to be little downside to supporting them.

 

With most parties, the real "danger" is that you realize that you've wasted your time and/or money, and that in most respects they're same-old/same-old.

Edited by softwareNerd
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Capitalist Chris:

I thoroughly sympathize with your zeal as an idealist (generally idealistic, rather than philosophically). I, and many others, would all like to see some improvements in the political leadership of our respective countries. And I was only partially joking about bribing the officials. SoftwareNerd is exactly right, taking a little time to exchange ideas with reasonable people is a very slow, but effective way to change the culture in Western Civilization. A shift in popular culture will precede the shift in the political culture.

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