Head Tale

I hope no one thinks they've stumbled upon NDP Watch with this post but I have to admit that I had to do a double (actually triple) take when I received the latest e-newsletter from the provincial NDP with the headline, “Leader's Gala, a snub to working people, and more policy videos.” 

For a moment, I actually thought someone must've hacked the NDP's e-mail servers because I read the headline as “Leader's Gala – a snub to working people”.  

I know that wasn't the intention but I still appreciate the unintended irony.  The Leader's Gala *is* a $50 a plate fundraising event and so it probably is true that it's far beyond the reach of most working people. 

I'm sure events like this are probably important to any political party, right, left or center, for reaching a certain segment of society while helping to fill party coffers.  But I like the recent post at Louis Riel Trail where he commends the latest Ryan Meili money bomb as a better way to fundraise in general as you can earn similar amounts by getting smaller donations from a lot more people.   The bonus of a successful money bomb is that you actively engage a lot more people as well. 

LRT's post talks of the Sask Party's $300/plate dinners but if we're being completely honest, a lot of his arguments would apply to the NDP's own fundraising dinner.  And this unfortunate juxtaposition only reinforces that impression. 

(I mean this post as no slight on whoever compiles the newsletter.  I'm reminded of an Alberta publisher I used to work with who posted their “Typo of the Week” on their office door.  Or to put it another way, “shit happens”.  And if I had better reading comprehension, I wouldn't even be doing this post! )