[pp.int.general] purpose of manifesto

[Reinier Bakels]

> > Now we are back on topic (at last!). I still have my doubts whether the
> > designation "pirate" has a positive promotional effect. I acknowledge 
> > that
> > the shock effect may add to the attention value. But otoh it is a 
> > negative
> > concept ...
>
> Well, it's too late to change it now, at least in the countries where
> the pirate parties have taken off.  Too much effort has already been
> invested in the branding.
Sure. But in The Netherlands where the PP is only embryonic, it is still 
open. So I value your arguments to resolve my doubts.
>
> Also, the name certainly raises interest, which is the first step to
> get people to learn more about the movement.
>
> As the pirate movement builds up more recognition internationally,
> calling a party something derived from 'pirate party' will also give
> the benefit of some part of the people (that follow international
> politics / the pirate movement) understanding what its values and
> goals are immediately.
>
> It's also fresh and cool.  Pirate is not just loaded with negative
> meanings - just look at how it is used in contemporary fiction for
> example (Pirates of the Caribean, Ninjas vs Pirates, there even was
> Lego Pirate kits back in my youth, and that was before they started
> putting any sad faces on any Lego figures).
>
> I've already mentioned the case of the Finnish Information Society
> Party - which had somewhat similar, although more reserved views as
> the pirate movement, while also trying to have a broader political
> platform, including education and so on.  They failed in getting much
> attention or members.
What if the acronym had been "FIST"? In NL we had a couple of new political 
parties recently and it actually strikes me that they all have dull names - 
the new fashion is to center politics around people. How about "The RMS 
Movement"? But in NL, RMS stands for the "Republic of South Moluccas" 
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Moluccas), a troubled group of refugies 
(a leftover from our colonial past), who made some terrorist attacks in the 
1970s in the north of The Netherlands. And as a Finn, you probably find that 
Linus Thorvalds deserves *even* more credit than RMS? How about the AAA, the 
Amelia Andersdotter Association (outside Sweden only, of course)? It is a 
beautiful name (sorry Amelia, to abuse your name).
>
> Of course, people are free to start parties with pirate values using
> other names in their own countries, Information Age Liberals doesn't
> sound so bad either.  But from what I can see the name has been an
> asset in the countries where it has been used (which doesn't mean some
> other name could be even better in another country of course).
>
> -- Hans Häggström (zzorn)
reinier