Dealing With The Dreaded HST...Petitions Are Not Enough

MakeHay
NotSpinVille


Look.....

When The Dippers went gaga over their 'Axe The Tax' campaign awhile back, I was immediately concerned that, especially if they did not come up with some real policy alternatives to back it up, the whirling blades of the wurlitzer would come back to whack them.

Here's what I wrote, way back in ancient times (ie. the Summer of 2008):

"....Today's 'Axe The Gas Tax' press release thingy from Carole James and the B.C. NDP is a good idea, at least in terms of pure, raw politics.

And, as such, I would also agree that they should grab as many doppler echoes as they can.....

....But.

It is not enough.

Because, in my opinion, they have to have to hit fast and hard with something new by the next newscycle so that what they are doing here doesn't get hammered down (and/or before folks realize that by taking this action they are actually aligning themselves, in simplistic media maw terms at least, with a certain group of neoStraussians from Albertario).

And besides, don't forget that Ms. James also has to deal with a the biggest media machine this province has ever seen.

Which is not CTV.

Or Global.

Or CanWest.

Or Corus.

Or even a guy named Holman.

Instead it is a thousand-headed hydra known as Mr. Campbell's 'OIC' (eg. PAB-assisted) network...."


And we all know what happened nine months later, right?

(especially when the Dippers got double-whacked by the hiving-off of the so-called 'green power movement' just as the election campaign kicked-off)

****

Now.

Here's the thing.

I feel exactly the same way about the recent Dipperian response to the HST.

Because even 500,000 signatures on Facebook will not be enough when, down the road, the Dippers get whacked-up the side of the head by the 'it's good for business' crowd and their sycophantic hordes in much of the proMedia.

So, what to do?

Well, the following, which I also suggested way back when, but I think also applies here as well might be worth considering:

"....Given all that, what should the James gang do next?

Well, my advice is to do a reverse Taylor (from the piked position).

As in Carole.

Which means that first you beat up on some egregious business bunds (maybe forestry... maybe coal bed methane.....maybe rapacious mining..... maybe not).

Then, by this time next week start making nice with carrots to real green and really sustainable businesses with really super-duper tax breaks for doing the right and righteous thing...."


The point is that the publicity generated by the spin can be used to help get some real policy alternatives into the proMedia sphere.

Which does two things.

First, it let's the public know that such alternatives are real possibilities.

And second, it will innoculate the Dippers from the next wave of OIC/PAB-assisted counter-spin.

OK?


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That's not to say that I think that the efforts of Mr. Tieleman et al. are a waste of time.....Instead, what I am saying is that they are not enough.....


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