Activism Awards--Am I wrong?

[ancapagency]

I'd like to share an idea that Jack proposed, but which during our discussion, I initially said probably wasn't worth the trouble.  I'm wondering if I was correct--as I've yet again heard a Free Stater complaining that other Free Staters weren't active enough activists, or perhaps weren't being active in the things this individual wanted them to be active in.  Additionally, there continues to be the perception with some few Free Staters that those of us who are "non-voters" aren't engaged in any activism.  So perhaps this idea of Jack's would go a ways towards correcting the problem.

Jack's idea is that perhaps we ought to come up with patches, or pins or some such award for all our activist campaigns.  As he described it to me, it would be analogous to the ribbons the military awards for various accomplishments, awards, and participation in various campaigns and so forth.  In the Army, this is sometimes known as "fruit salad" and the ribbons are those colored little bits of cloth worn on the chest of the dress uniform.

This serves as a sort of resume for the soldier--if you know the "code" you can tell approximately how long a soldier has been in the military, what campaigns they've participated in, what sort of things they do, and to some extent, if they are a parade soldier or a combat soldier. I initially responded by saying I though the idea was unnecessary, that folks probably wouldn't go for it, and by making the comment that "Medals are like hemorrhoids--eventually every asshole gets some."  I now wonder if I was wrong.

So I'd like to hear what folks think of the idea.  I'm not even looking for "is it possible" or "how much would it cost" or anything about the practicality or implementation.  I'm just asking if I was wrong--are folks actually interested in this sort of thing?  Would y'all like to wear pins or patches or something on your shirt or jacket or something at events like Porc Fest and such?  I mean, obviously the wearing of such awards is completely optional--combat soldiers (unlike parade soldiers) tend to leave off some of their awards for several reasons (when and if they can get away with it).  But if it's something folks would actually be interested in, I can see how it could be both useful and a bit of a spur to further activism. 

So please let me know what you think.

[J’raxis 270145]

I think it's a good idea. I was actually thinking about something very similar to this recently, not for our activism accomplishments, but for organization membership and/or specific causes one is supporting—for example, when I'm usually up at the State House, I might be there for five different things—the NHLA, NH Common Sense, CURSOR, and perhaps two other bills that don't have real "organizations" behind them. One runs out of room for 1" pins and 3" stickers fast...

These are the types of ribbons I assume you're comparing this to?—



I would recommend using this same compact design, not something that would take up a lot of room like a patch. But it should be different enough so that they can't be confused with the military ribbons. Perhaps square, or rectangles of a different proportion, or some other compact, interlocking shape.

[porcupine kate]

I think it is a neat idea.  I'll have to see what I can come up with that would work.  I like the idea of pins.  You can move them around better.

[ReverendRyan]

I could definitely see this working. It can kindle a little competitive spirit in activism, and at hardly any cost or effort.

People can compare their flair:



And using something like Shrinky Dinks type material glued to a thumbtack-style backer would make them cost next to nothing and give plenty of variety.

[ancapagency]

Poll added.

[John Edward Mercier]

Not into polls, but give them a try. If people like the idea it will catch on.

[SethCohn]

Sorta a realworld version of a liberty version of the geekcode.
http://www.geekcode.com/geek.html

Let's do a virtual libertygeek code first, and see if people find it worthwhile

[ancapagency]

Ok folks--again, I'm not interested in discussing implementation at this time--I just want to know if it's something folks are interested in, even remotely. 

It is pointless to discuss implementation if folks aren't interested.  I know we all have ideas for how it could be done, and why it won't work, or whatever.  But the fact is, if folks aren't interested, we shouldn't waste time thinking about implementation--we should spend that time working out some other idea.

[J’raxis 270145]

We seem to have enough people interested in the idea to try and work out rough ideas for implementation. And like Ryan brought up when we all were discussing this, implementation—particularly the costs involved—can seriously determine how many people would be interested. Price has to be taken into account when gauging demand, after all. A 10¢ piece of plastic or laminated paper will probably be a lot more viable than a $5 metal pin: Organizations who want to employ this could just give away the former, but would probably have to charge recipients for the latter.