Crowdfunding through chaos

Last week I had a chance to chat with Rhodri Davies of Why Philanthropy Matters. This is one of the opportunities catalyzed by Blueprint 2025's section on "Keeping prior conversations going."

We talked about blurring lines between charity/politics, charity/markets, politics/markets (read about "political capitalism")* and analog/digital. In the course of this, Rhodri asked a question about the legitimacy of crowdfunding platforms. By legitimacy here, he meant the "social and political" legitimacy that is accruing to these platforms as once again they are providing infrastructure for major disasters. Just as we used them to fund our local nonprofits, bookstores, and cafes in 2020, community swag efforts (the t-shirt up top), crowdfunding, mutual aid, and neighbors helping neighbors (what tech bros call p2p) are critical to the rebuilding efforts now underway across Altadena and other parts of the Los Angeles area. In doing so, some will say these platforms are taking on the roles of charity ministers (Attorneys Generals in the USA). If so, well, they're also taking on the role of federal governments, investment advisors, and bankers for small businesses.

The deliberate campaign of terrorism and destruction being waged by unelected, unhired minions for #Musk and his merry band of #DiabolicalOligarchs means people in the U.S.A. will be increasing our use of #mutualaid, #crowdfunding, and #communitycare in the near term, and probably for the long haul. (I"ll be talking with Lina Srivastava of The Center for Transformational Change about MutualAid on Feb 20). Crowdfunding platforms are something of the ne plus ultra in privatization of care and individuation of effort, so it's no wonder they're among American's favorite tools.

Musk's conflicts of interest have already led to the deaths of 67 people. A week prior to the horrific crash of the army helicopter and regional jet, Musk oversaw the removal of #FAA leadership. Why? Because the #FAA regulates #SpaceX. Back in September, Musk insisted that the head of #FAA needed to resign because he was interfering with #Musk's lifelong fantasy of getting to Mars.

We must stop #Musk, who no one voted for. In barely two weeks he and his trespassing toadies have killed at least 67 people, harmed countless more, and thrown enough sand in the gears of effective government that even if we stop him right now, it will take a long time to recover.

We need a coalition with those who voted for #Trump and who despise #Musk and his band of #billionaire #grifters as much as those who voted against them did. Yes, strange bedfellows. Our democracy demands it. We need to stop The Oligarch's Coup*, now.

On our way there I expect to see growth in #crowdfunding platforms as charitable infrastructure, along with any and all ways of moving money opaquely – from DAFs to crypto to FinTech.

*Political capitalism is defined by the Cato Institute as "an economic and political system in which the economic and political elite cooperate for their mutual benefit." Or, as I prefer to call it, The Oligarch's Coup.

*Elon has dreamed of going to Mars since he was a boy, and he's getting older faster than life-expanding technologies are coming online. This is his chance to create a global oligarchy, take control of the U.S. Treasury and Military, and get him and his pals into their bunkers when the rest of us grab our pitchforks. My suggestion is "More pitchforks, sooner."