(Common Cause is in a difficult position of having access to the powers-that-be without any influence over the powers-that-be. They are allowed into the room and want to stay there no matter how much it stinks inside. It is only outside that room where they will be able to build a movement capable of transforming what goes on inside, and I hope they’re trying to build that movement. – promoted by eli_beckerman)
I was honored to receive in the mail today an individual gift membership to Common Cause, given to me personally by a Common Cause Massachusetts board member who follows my campaigns.
It has moved me to forward the gesture to another.
During last year’s campaign I received many candidate questionnaires from organizations who were interested in educating their members and voters. I answered all of them, regardless of whether I agreed with the positions of the organization or not. Common Cause Massachusetts is an organization that aspires to open, fair, and accountable government. I was proud to claim agreement with all of the organization’s current priorities.
Here is a summary of how I and my opponent (4th Berkshire) and fellow candidates in all House districts responded or didn’t respond last year.
Here is the cover letter that I mailed in with my answers in early October, 2010.
As reported in local press and as observed by many party ‘old-timers,’ we in the Berkshires have been welcoming many new members into the Green-Rainbow Party since last year’s election. Many of these new members express support for the kind of good clean government that Common Cause espouses.
In appreciation for this thoughtful gift from a supporter I will continue the gift chain by presenting my own gift membership to one of these new members pictured above. I encourage voters to support Common Cause MA, which has broad multi-partisan support. Its current home page has important information about the patronage hiring scandals in the Probation office.
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… you have neither influence nor access.
Interesting (Eli) that while you claim they have NO influence, the Christian Science Monitor suggests rather that “Common Cause … has been an uncommonly successful lobby … in terms of the depth and breadth of its efforts – in the Congress and state legislatures – there probably has never been a reform movement so active and with such a record of accomplishment.”
Needless to say, I’m kinda confused.
I don’t see the point in disparaging the efforts of those who ARE willing to put up with the smell (of course, it doesn’t smell nearly as bad to me as it does you) to accomplsih SOMETHING, rather than remaining outside and accomplishing … well, whatever it is that those on the outside can point to.
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I’m not disputing some of the issues that are raised about insider effectiveness, but as an office-seeker who chooses to run on the Green-Rainbow Party ticket I found Common Cause to be much more inviting and fair to my candidacy.
1) Common Cause MA sent me a questionnaire asking for my positions on issues that they care about and seek to educate voters on.
2) Common Cause MA published the results and sent it to their membership, which also revealed how many incumbents didn’t even bother to answer the questions. (It’s still online, by the way, the link is in my original post).
Contrast this with other ‘insider groups’ – MassCare, Sierra Club, MA Gay and Lesbian Political Caucus, PHENOM, for example – who either a) didn’t bother with doing any voter education at all, b) didn’t bother sending questionnaires to anyone challenging a Democratic Party incumbent opponent, or c) didn’t publish results of questionnaires that went out. Common Cause offered a better example of how to engage in the governmental process than these other groups.
Regardless of the opinion of the Green Mass Group editor who offered commentary at the top of my post, I look forward to working with Common Cause as a future candidate and as a future legislator. I remain thankful for the gift membership I received and for the comments and discussion that followed my post.