[Lnc-business] LIBERTARIAN PARTY POST-LIFE MEMBERSHIPS

[Alicia Mattson]

I am pro-post-life-memberships.  We may need a platform plank now to
clarify whether unwanted hauntings by the dearly departed constitute
violations of property rights, privacy, etc...

-Alicia



On Fri, Apr 1, 2016 at 6:35 AM, Daniel Wiener <wiener at alum.mit.edu> wrote:

> LIBERTARIAN PARTY POST-LIFE MEMBERSHIPS
>
>
> *EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:  **When the Libertarian Party raised the price of
> Life Memberships from $1,000 to $1,500 in 2014, there was a one-time spike
> in the purchase of Life Memberships to beat the deadline, which resulted in
> a revenue windfall of tens of thousands of dollars.  That bump suggested
> that other extended-period memberships might be equally profitable.
> Accordingly, the Re-Membership Committee was formed to consider
> out-of-the-box options to the existing Libertarian Party dues structure.
> Our committee was tasked with presenting its recommendations in time for
> the 2016 national convention to consider them.  This is our committee’s
> report.*
>
>
>
> The Libertarian Party’s membership structure currently consists of
> non-dues-paying members who have signed the non-initiation-of-force pledge;
> sustaining members who have paid at least $25 per year; and life members
> who have paid $1,500 (or more in some cases, for higher honorary levels).
> But each life membership ends by definition with that person’s death.  What
> happens afterwards?  In rare cases supporters have left bequests for the LP
> in their wills, but that is an unpredictable and undependable source of
> revenue.  Furthermore, it provides little direct benefit to the donor after
> his or her death, and only hypothetical benefit for the furtherance of
> libertarian values which the donor will never actually see.
>
>
> We propose to solve this problem by offering Post-Life Memberships in the
> Libertarian Party, which will be pre-paid but take effect only after a
> person’s death, thus filling a currently under-served donor niche.
> Establishing a much freer society for our nation and indeed the entire
> world is a life-and-death matter and should be treated that way.  By
> purchasing a Post-Life Membership, a person’s association with the LP will
> transcend that artificial boundary, and will represent an enduring legacy.
>
>
> Suggested Post-Life Membership levels would be as follows:
>
>
>
>    - *Libertarian Party Angel -- $3,000*.  This would be a limited-period
>    post-life membership which would only extend until the year 3,000.
>
>
>
>    - *Libertarian Party Archangel -- $33,400.*  This is an unlimited
>    post-life membership, with the amount indexed to the FEC’s maximum annual
>    contribution limit.
>
>
>
>    - *Libertarian Party Heavenly Inhabitor -- $100,200.*  This is a
>    specialized post-life membership aimed at Libertarians who are focused on
>    where they will dwell in the after-life.  It represents the maximum annual
>    amount which the FEC says can be contributed to the LP Building Fund, and
>    will also be indexed to that contribution limit.
>
>
>
>    - *Libertarian Party Lucifer -- $1,000,000 and up.*  This is an
>    unrestricted post-life membership for Libertarians who refuse to be bound
>    in either life or death by arbitrary rules and standards, and are willing
>    to brave the consequences (whatever they may be) in the cause of freedom.
>
>
> All Post-Life Members will be sent electronic copies of the *LP News* to
> their last known email addresses, and their estates will continue to
> receive the same email fundraising pitches as all other LP members.  Their
> names will be placed on plaques in the LP office and memorialized at the
> next national convention, and they will continue to pad the Libertarian
> Party’s membership rolls just as Life Members do.
>
>
> (As a side note, we believe that libertarians who have been placed in
> cryogenic storage should still be able to qualify for Post-Life
> Memberships.  When they are successfully revived, they would then be
> categorized as “un-dead” and their Post-Life Memberships would be suspended
> until such time as they later re-died.)
>
>
> The Re-Membership Committee is optimistic that a test mailing targeted to
> older sustaining members and especially to current Life Members could
> produce exceptionally lucrative results.  We urge that this be done as
> rapidly as possible, since time is of the essence before more of this
> demographic passes away.
>
>
> This report is hereby submitted on behalf of the Re-Membership Committee
> this day of April 1, 2016 by Daniel Wiener, Chair, who wishes to express
> his appreciation to the rest of the Committee, especially Aaron Starr,
> Alicia Mattson, and David Nolan (deceased).
>
>
> [image: Inline image 1]
>
>
> Daniel Wiener, Re-Membership Chair
>
>
> P.S.  While we had originally intended to include Pre-Life LP memberships
> with the Post-Life proposals, our committee has been unable to complete
> that portion by the April 1st target date.  Several complex issues remain
> to be resolved, such as whether the Pre-Life memberships would apply prior
> to conception between the sperm and the egg, or prior to actual birth?
> Also, in the case of a miscarriage, would the parents be entitled to a full
> refund or a pro-rata refund based on the fraction of nine months?  And how
> would unexpected multiple births be handled?  For example, are twins each
> entitled to half of a Pre-Life membership, or must parents buy an extra
> one?  These represent difficult philosophical questions upon which
> libertarians can reasonably disagree.
>
>
>
>
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>
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