I keep getting messages and letters asking me to donate money to political campaigns. For instance, there is something going on in Wisconsin that averages two donation-seeking messages per day. Plus there is always the presidential campaign. And there is that extremely weird homophobe guy who, for some unfathomable reason, has decided that I’m one of his followers and keeps asking me to give him money to help sponsor his homophobic political activities.
I never donate money to politicians because I don’t see the point. Where is the money supposed to go? To buy advertisement? It seems really weird to me that candidates should win on the basis of how many billboards and TV spots they manage to buy. And what is there to advertise, anyway? People who are unaware of Obama and Romney are those who will probably not vote anyway. I mean, do you know anybody who has watched a campaign ad and changed their mind as to who they wanted to vote for?
Is this drive to hit people for money part of the consumerist mentality or is there a real reason to donate money to political campaigns?
Clarissa's Blog 
I mean, do you know anybody who has watched a campaign ad and changed their mind as to who they wanted to vote for?
Actually, yes, at the local and state levels. I have found out about candidates I was not aware of, or found out something about their record or their proposals that I did not know and that got me interested.
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Never! Politicians always and everywhere are the lowest form of human life. They cannot survive in the absence of those ‘qualities’. They steal such wealth as I have at will and without remorse. Why would I ever willingly give them a red cent?
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It’s hard to disagree with this.
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Having been part of political campaigns I know first hand that ads are effective. Most people out there are not paying attention and they can only be reached with a 30 second snippet during their favorite show. Of course, there is a limit to what an ad can accomplish.
If you live in a swing state, the amount of money raised can well be the difference between defeat and victory.
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I donate $10 to the NDP every month, and I donated an additional $20 to Brian Topp’s campaign when he was running for the NDP leadership. It’s tax deductible, and even though the NDP isn’t perfect, they’re the first political party I’ve ever actually felt reflected my values who stood a chance of winning a national election, so I’m willing to cough up.
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I don’t donate to political campaigns directly, but I do donate to some select political action groups. (However, I actively sought out both groups. I do not respond to email or phone solicitations for money.) While I don’t think any of the advertisements they create actually change local people’s minds about where they stand on the issues, I think they sometimes affect whether those voters view the issues as important. That is, I think they are at least partly effective at getting people who agree with these stances but are somewhat apathetic to actually get off their arses and vote.
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Consumerist mentality seems close. Some people like to think they have ‘done something’ or made an impact without having to do any work, so they donate money to whatever cause they feel is important in lieu of exerting actual effort. In essence, they buy satisfaction and give themselves a pat on the back for it.
Remember, in America, money is the answer to everything.
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