Cutting through Singer's Paradox

Seth Godin muses on Cutting through Singer's Paradox.

And this is the problem every good cause outside of your current walk to work faces. They are trying to solve a difficult problem far away. They're working to do something that is neither close nor now. And often, because the work is so hard, there's no satisfactory thank you, certainly not the thank you of, we're done, you're a hero.

The challenge for real philanthropic growth, then, is to either change the culture so our marketing psychology is to donate to things that are neither close nor now, and that offer little in the way of thanks, or to create change that hacks our current perceptions of what's important.

Emphasis Mine

This is also the challenge for Communist parties everywhere. How do we get people to see beyond their immediate economic and political concerns?

One way is to apply Lennist principles of party growth—gather all people who see the real solution together into a disciplined party to share experiences, discuss and debate ideas, and agree to a course of action.

This is not a vanguard, but a temporary aggregation of people who are somewhat advanced in their ideas and practices at a particular time. It is a group that others will want to join as their experiences and ideas advance.

The party does not lead through superiority, but draws others into it through getting the situation correct, and acting at critical moments.