Their website:
https://capitalist.org.za/home
So, does anyone know anything about them? Are they worth a vote?
I am really, really intrigued but not yet convinced. However details seem thin on the ground.
I haven’t watched their little videos yet, so I don’t know how good their plans are. But I like their notion of smaller parties letting go of grandiose plans and instead focus on smaller but achievable goals. I also think they are right in that within an election or two, SA will have a coalition government, at which point it becomes very feasible to vote for smaller parties.
Got around to watching their videos. Some of their plans seem very workable to me; others (such as reducing violence against women by arming them) strike me as more dubious. I am not entirely sure about their economic plans (e.g. negative tax) because I am not really qualified to critique it. On the face of it, it also seems like a workable idea.
In any event, for those of somewhat libertarian bent, they are the only option. The actual libertarian party, as with last election, will not be running. My guess is that they are so embroiled in issues of ideology that they can’t get their ducks in a row. But what we need now is a plan, not an ideology. Alas, the chances that the capitalists will get enough votes to get a representative into parliament are probably very slim. Almost nobody even knows about them, and the ones who do will likely argue that it is a “wasted vote.”
I haven’t quite decided where I stand on the issue. It would actually be nice to vote for someone for a change, instead of merely against someone, as we tend to do both here and in the U.S.A. In both countries, that attitude has poisoned political discourse.
Well, by the bevy of people asking me about this, both online and IRL… I think their support may be understated.
The trick with a party like this is to convince everyone that everyone else is also thinking the same thing.
Yup. The reason why a small party like this fails to get someone into parliament is precisely because voters think they won’t, and therefore think it would be a “wasted vote.” So they vote for someone else, even someone that leaves a bad taste in their mouth.
But even if they don’t get into parliament, a vote for them isn’t wasted; it forms part of the data they have at their disposal to do better next time. To some extent it also sends out the “none of the above” message to the big parties.
You know… from the last couple of elections I actually have “super emergency” fatigue.
It feels like every election is an SA “do or die” situation. I think this time around I may actually vote with my conscience.
Edit: For clarity, what exactly that means I don’t know yet.
I have noticed this emergency thing with Americans: every single election for the past few decades they told me that next time round they’ll vote with their conscience, but this time’s too important; if the wrong guy gets in, it’s the end of civilization as we know it. We have seen where this attitude has brought them: as it is their choices have always been severely limited, and nowadays, come election time, they have a choice between the right wing (Hillary and pals) and the batshit insane wing (the current administration and support). Their democracy has become so dysfunctional it has to significant extent ended.
Here’s what the man himself says about the “wasted vote” argument: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jrsu5fYEtB4#t=10m44s
He’s right too. In a proportional representation system, it makes sense to vote your conscience. On lots of issues, they will probably support the DA in parliament anyway. And even if they don’t get a seat, it is still not a “wasted vote,” because it gives them valuable information on how much support they have and where, so they can gear up for the next election.
There are times when it makes sense to vote tactically, but one should be very wary of it, because it weakens the fabric of democracy. At least, I think there is a danger of that.
The lavender bovine got my national vote today. Emotionally, it was a curious mix of bored dread and cautious curiosity. A bit like installing Ubuntu over Windows for the first time.
Same with me. Perhaps they won’t get enough votes to reach parliament, in which case it was a “wasted vote,” but then at least they can’t do any harm!
On provincial level I somewhat reluctantly supported the DA. They do have a fairly good record of clean administration, but Jesus, the whoring for votes. I eventually had to block their number to stop getting calls at all hours of the day. And I hated their negative campaign, actually making up reasons for why people should not vote for smaller parties. “Don’t vote your conscience, vote for us, because otherwise the ANC gets in.”
Douglas Adams’s planet of lizards all over again.
Doesn’t look like the Purple Cow will get anywhere remotely close to parliament. Well, we tried. MOOOO!
I’d hold the phone on that one. It doesn’t look good but their target audience remains largely uncounted (populous metros).
Well, we’ll see. Thus far, it actually looks as if the status quo will be largely maintained. The ANC seems to have lost quite a bit of support, but the other parties remain pretty much the same. At least, that is the case at the moment, which 9/5/2019, 16:24.
This report:
is almost gleeful about how badly the “extremist” parties lost. Well, some of them are extremist. The Purple Cow did not strike me as extremist at all. And real extremist parties like the EFF and the Freedom Front both did significantly better this election than they did last time, which I would consider somewhat worrying news; fortunately, while both did better, they did not do spectacularly better because both started from a low base.
The BLF, however, will not be missed.
Bet you, that communist son of mine (again, where did I go wrong?) would like to have a word with you about the capitalist’s not being extremist. But I agree with you the FF+ and the EFF. We really don’t need shit like that. I voted DA, but it was more a vote for the opposition than for the DA specifically.
I’m not so sure about that. An argument could be made that the growth seen in both the EFF and the FF+ serves as a buffer that absorbs many of the more radical and conservative elements of the ANC and DA, respectively. That is, the growth of those two parties has an important potential positive effect in that it will serve to consolidate the more moderate elements in both the ANC and DA, so that the two will be able to get on with the business of governance with less internal friction.
Whichever way it ultimately pans out, parliament will be an interesting thing to watch over the next few months.
Overall, the election results so far paint a depressing picture: As a whole, SA’s voters are mostly content to perpetuate the past decade of governance, with only a fairly small fraction voting for something different.
'Luthon64
ANC (Numbers rounded because why not)
2004: 70%
2009: 66%
2014: 62%
2019: 57% (Provisional)
SA’s voters are mostly content to perpetuate the past decade of governance, with only a fairly small fraction voting for something different
Welcome back. 
I think the above shows that, over time, every little bit helps. Let’s applaud the trend.