[Lnc-business] Why is it important to run for winnable offices?

[Joshua Katz]

A radical pragmatist manifesto

Last night, my Planning Commission looked at a proposal to use the zoning
regulations to get rid of donation boxes on private property. It seems
people are concerned that the boxes, placed near the sidewalk so people
know they are there, don't fit their aesthetic views, and they wish to use
force to make the town look more like their vision of a New England town.

This New England look thing happens fairly often. A previous applicant for
a permit had been berated by a commission member for proposing a garage
that :
Did not contain any apartments
Looked nice but wasn't visible from the town green
Was facing a direction he didn't like
Would have a parking cut out associated with it
I let that tirade pass by since I knew the permit would be given and he was
just making himself look silly.

Anyway, many members spoke in favor of the regulation. I spoke against it.
In the end, the commission opposed it.

I could fight this since I was elected. I could instead have gotten 1% in a
hopeless race. I could have run in this race campaigning on irrelevant
issues and lost. I could have run on eliminating all regulations and lost.
I could have felt pure. Donation boxes would now be banned.

So what makes this a radical pragmatist manifesto? The radical part is
presenting strongly libertarian stances within the context of the campaign.
I did not call for less corporate welfare, I called for none. I spoke
clearly and without apology. I presented a coherent libertarian vision
within the context of the Planning Commission. Hence, radical pragmatist.

Joshua Katz
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