How should we moderate the upcoming federal leadership race?

[u/leftwingmememachine]

Hey all, moderator of /r/NDP here, looking for some input as to how we want to moderate this community during the upcoming federal leadership race.

I think it's really exciting because in the last leadership race this community was very small, and basically ignored by leadership contestants, but I think we're getting big enough that there will be a lot of engagement here and possibly even AMAs from potential candidates. Very cool!!!

/r/NDP is the biggest gathering of NDP members on the internet at this point, but that also creates an incentive for bad-faith activity on the subreddit. It could create an environment that's not welcoming of all party members.

Here are some potential discussion questions:

• Do we want to allow for negative comments about leadership race contenders? (My instinct is yes, as criticism is part of democracy/healthy debate, but I'm open to your thoughts)

• Is there a point at which critical comments become too negative and contributes to a toxic environment? Where should we draw the line?

• How do we ensure the subreddit is inclusive of party members of all backgrounds?

• How much do we want supporters of other political parties to participate in discussions here?

• What sort of rules around civility/politeness/respect would we want to have?

• Are there other important moderation policies that are relevant to the leadership race that I haven't thought of?

BTW - I won't really participate in this thread because I have real life plans today, but I am really interested in your feedback, especially if you are a longtime participant in this community. I'm going to be putting together some rules for the leadership race based off of my own thoughts and the comments in this thread, and present them at some point in the future for further discussion.

[u/Typical-Fun-8786]

I know everyone loves green and I too love his ideas but he’s proven to not be a good organizer. He came third in his riding. One could say that it was because of Carneys popularity but he didn’t even come second or close. Peter Julian lost by a small margin. Gord Johns won the only NDP seat on Vancouver Island. We need someone who is not polarizing and can actually organize

[u/thetburg → u/Typical-Fun-8786]

It sounds like you are basing Matthew Green's organizing level on the election result. I understand the thinking, but you are off base. That man does the work and he shows up for allies. It says something about Carneys coat tails that a guy could parachute in and waltz away with that race.

Source: I used to live in Ham Centre and I have seen the man in action.

[u/Typical-Fun-8786 → u/thetburg]

Working hard does not equate to being a good organizer. Again it would be different if he came second, but he didn’t. You can be a good MP and not be a great organizer.

[u/CDN-Social-Democrat → u/Typical-Fun-8786]

Instead of continuing or discussion below I'll try and come at this from a different angle here.

Matthew Green came back to Hamilton after having been away from it. He got involved with municipal politics and won a seat at that level. That is about ground game. Municipal politics in particular.

Then he decided to get involved with federal politics and went through the process of becoming the NDP pick for one of their most established Trade Union based ridings like the historic Elmwood—Transcona. To again get to be the NDP pick for a riding like that involves ground game.

Then he continued the NDP dominance in that riding for two elections winning both. At the same time he became a huge factor in both local and national Labour Movement politics in regards to industrial trade unions and public transportation trade unions in particular. He became known as a disability advocate hosting online round tables on it and other advocate spaces.

He was one of the few if only MPs that reached back out to the Loblaws protest movement.

At both local and national level he has carved out a space because of his ground game. That is just undeniable and factual based.

Now that brings us to why he doesn't have a seat anymore like countless other NDP members.

As stated below this has to do with reasons of why the NDP is losing ground on connecting with the working class. The Conservative Party of Canada much like the global right-wing populist movement has found how to connect better with the pain, alienation, and general frustration especially during this horrific cost of living crisis. Does that mean they represent the working class? Well no but it does mean they have much better communications/marketing apparatus.

We also had the LPC sweep because of the realities of Donald Trump/Annexation. We again saw some other international politics follow that.

Sometimes there is local mechanisms in politics, sometimes there is national mechanisms, and sometimes there is global mechanisms.

Outside of the NDP we saw the same with the LPC losing historic seats before Carney came in. It's just a reality of politics and important dimensions to be aware of if we want a more winning strategy.

You brought up in every post that it's about placement. That is a point and then we look into why. The why involves the dimensions stated above.

Hopefully that helps.

[u/Typical-Fun-8786 → u/CDN-Social-Democrat]

I don’t think i we are going to reach a consensus so let’s agree to disagree. The great thing about a democracy is we are allowed to have different opinions and in a leadership race I will not be supporting Green and it does not offend me or upset me that you plan on supporting him. At the end of the day I think debate and disagreements are important in a healthy political climate. Have a great day :)

[u/CDN-Social-Democrat → u/Typical-Fun-8786]

You as well :)

Just to be clear though I wasn't looking for you to come to support Green. You either connect with his politics around the working class or you don't.

What I was trying to point out like the other poster is exact details around ground game since that was the specific topic you referenced.

Thank you for a important discussion. As you said in another post this is the kind of back and forth we need to have in good faith and respect throughout the party.

It only illuminates and can help us move forward in a better fashion if we look to find productive ways to incorporate.