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Tuesday, December 05, 2006

the $5 challenge.

From interlocutor. I recommend you read the full post.

Further afterthought: someone commented on this blog earlier that giving the Tories $5 is no big deal, since you can subversively give 5-10 times that much to the Liberals or NDs. I hereby challenge everyone who gave $5 to the Tories on that basis to make that contribution to an opposition party which best matches their values so as to undo the damage done by giving money and validation to the one-party-state given.

12 comments:

Duncan said...

Like thousands of others, I gave my $5.00 on a different basis, so I'll pass on the challenge.

Anonymous said...

Aparently the party actually raised over $1 million - I guess all those who bought membershipr (or were given) did not go out and vote.

That's a pretty sizable war chest in and of itself. The libs and dippers just don't know how to win elections.

Anonymous said...

It should be noted that you need to deduct the cost of running the leadership vote from the $5 membership sale to get a feel for the net proceeds. My thinking is that it is significantly less than $1 million in terms of cash in the bank. Room rentals (for polling stations) and food for the volunteers, as well as the cost of holding the Calgary and Edmonton functions - all need to be subtracted.

Anonymous said...

the Alberta Building Trades Council and Frank Bruseker just bankrolled the PC's next election campaign. THANKS DOUCHEBAGS!

Anonymous said...

"Room rentals (for polling stations)"

Constituency Associations were forced to pay for this cost while the central party collected all the money from membership sales.

Talk about leaving the grassroots out to twist in the wind!

Anonymous said...

The constituency associations get a portion of each membership sold (either one or two dollars, I forget which).

Sean Tisdall said...

Albertans have watched the federal libs collect billions in taxes over the last few decades and piss it away on stupid programs like the long-gun registry, ad-scam, kyoto, seventy billion dollars of reduction in the federal debt and other crazy endeavours.

Also, I question rather replacing old, inefficient infrastructure and learning to limit consumption while retaining utility is a stupid program.

Allie Wojtaszek said...

Actually the constituencies aren't getting any of the membership costs due to a decision by the party to keep the money after July in order to fund the costs of conducting the Leadership Race.

Anonymous said...

Regardless - the money goes to the Conservative Party - an unfair advantage.

I find the Alberta Building Trade Council's "purchase" of the huge block of memberships most alarming - they circumvented the rules to purchse $50,000 worth of political favour. Don't we have political contribution rules regulating both individual and corporate donations for a REASON?!? Oh, wait, it's the conservatives... they are above the rules.

After all, Morton's supporters have been crying how unfair the whole 2nd vote was, since obviously our new premier was elected unfairly because he was so far behind in the first poll... oh, boo-hoo! (The rules are made for him/his supporters to circumvent if they are "inconvenient"??

Anonymous said...

Just hope all the conservatives don't buy Liberal or NDP memberships so we can mess with your next leadership race.

Allie Wojtaszek said...

Membership dues are not "an unfair advantage" - they are membership dues. People don't have to be members - but if they want to be there is a certain cost in administering them that membership (card, mailouts, constituency support, AGM and policy convention planning, executive meetings, etc etc) that I somehow think goes beyond 5.00.

Anonymous said...

I just sent a $100 cheque to my Liberal Riding Association. Go Calgary Currie! Go Dave Taylor!