How many of you applied to be Chief Executive Officer of Eli Lilly & Co when you graduated from high school or college?
As I thought - very, very few hands are up - and those that did raise their hand never received an interview.
How many of you applied for jobs that were at the bottom of the company ladder - which you hoped to climb or to lead you to better jobs elsewhere?
Just as I thought. Most of you.
Then why do Libertarians keep applying for elective office jobs like President, Governor, Congress and Indiana General Assembly, and are then disappointed when they don't win?
I don't know why.
Perhaps more Libertarians should be starting at the bottom of the elected office company ladder and working their way to the top.
The "Moral Majority" did this in the early 70's, first running for school board and city council races. By the mid-90's, they had prime leadership positions in the United States Congress.
Perhaps the Libertarian Party should follow the lead of others, and first apply for the mail room positions, prove our worth, and move up the ladder to Congress, General Assembly, etc.?
Just my two cents worth.
4 comments:
Well stated, but we must also model the entrepreneur, recognizing each opportunity to advance our ideals when it presents itself. When one of the two major parties fails to contest a General Assembly seat, we should not sit on the sidelines. We need to put forward well-prepared, qualified and credible candidates. In this manner the electorate and media will be more receptive to candidates run at the lower levels of government.
At first glance, I would agree. It takes a foundation to build a house. But don't ask Mayor Ballard who bypassed the mail room about starting at the bottom because it coincides with my agreement with Ed when opportunity strikes, albeit rare, go for it. Ed's words "well-prepared,qualified and credible" are half the formula. The rest is building consensus, building an electorate machine & war chest, starting early, using multimedia for communication, blogs and websites that are daily updated and not left stagnant. The underlying caution for libertarians is not to be alarmists or broadcasters of tearing down our government but instead speak with one voice about the virtues of a better way of governing, while waging a giant struggle to fight against the Santa Claus handouts from 2 traditional giveaway parties. Do we turn away from ballot access each year? This is a matter for the LPIN and pacs to decide. The LPIN needs to walk past the mail room and head toward the break room for a conversation and some serious introspection. Candidates have sacrificed energy, time, and money, and deserve more than a pat on the head. They need a defined plan and concentrated backing. Where is it?
I think the progress of the Free State Project in New Hampshire should be noted. They managed to elect 5 Free Staters to the state house this year. They look beyond the party name, and go with what's best for liberty. The same could be done in Indiana.
What is a shame (to me , at least) was that there was a golden opportunity for this to happen this past spring, yet there were only a handful of people savvy enough to recognize that, and way too many people who allowed their immaturity and emotions interfere.
Far too many people get involved with the LP thinking they are just going to jump right in, since they are so smart and understand the issues better than the voters.
They nearly always fail to realize that people need to understand why they are supporting you, and very rarely is it because your ideas are better. Just ask Andy Horning, who was reminded of that...for the fifth time.
And before anyone jumps on me for "attacking Andy", few of you have sacrificed as much for Andy's causes or fought in the trenches alongside him as long as I have. I've earned the right to make that observation.
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