I was speaking recently with a donor who really gets it. The conversation led to the recent police brutality allegations and this gentleman was able to connect this incident to our educational system, our litigious society, political correctness in the media, the "New Deal" and its effect on family structure, and maybe even the price of tea in China if we had enough time. You see, culture has changed from many influences and fixing what ails Rhode Island, and indeed America, is a battle fought on many fronts.
That is exactly why the Seven Capacities are so important. If you are unfamiliar with the term, briefly, each capacity is a description of a type of organization that performs a function necessary to implement political and cultural change (and you can't have one without the other).
As an example, "Intellectual Capacity" provides information. That's what OSPRI does, as well as RIPEC, Kids Count, and the Poverty Institute, to name just a few. Another capacity is "Investigative Capacity" which provides a watchdog service similar to what is done by investigative reporters in the traditional media (Tim White, Bill Rappley, etc...), nontraditional media (Hummel Report), and even citizen groups like Operation Clean Government and Common Cause.
For more details of the Seven Capacities Model please read this and you can read my own explanation here.
You may note that when I wrote that piece in December 2008 I only spoke of six capacities. When Fred Barnes wrote about it (Weekly Standard) in July 2008 he named seven, differentiating between "New Media Capacity" (blogs, Internet, video, and radio) and "Confronting Mainstream Media Capacity." But since then, those of us in the Industry have consolidated those two making six. However, there has always been a seventh capacity but it operates in different ways depending on the area and often does so under the radar.
In the example cited in the Barnes piece, "The Colorado Model," the seventh capacity was mentioned, but not identified - it is collectively the billionaires who funded the project. The Seventh Capacity is the capacity to coordinate efforts. In Colorado this was easy to do not just because they controlled the money, but also because many of the groups were started at the same time in a coordinated method for a single purpose.
Most states that are trying to replicate this model already have many of the capacities operating independently, and very few states have an organized funding stream that can coordinate efforts. Rhode Island certainly falls in this category.
But things are changing.
In Rhode Island, and on the other side of the ideological chasm, the seventh capacity is performed by the Unions and One Rhode Island. You are all familiar with "Unions" but One Rhode Island may be less known.
One Rhode Island is a project of the Poverty Institute (which up until recently was a "project" of the Rhode Island College Foundation - click HERE for more information on this web). One Rhode Island is a coalition of 160 organizations that "generally" support similar goals. One RI simply holds a platform of legislation and calls the 160 members in the coalition when bills are being heard and support is needed.
I don't know how the legislative platform is derived at One Rhode Island, but here on the center-right, we let our outside capacities dictate the agenda.
In Washington, where thousands of organizations covering all capacities have been operating for decades, collaboration and a cohesive message was missing. So, during the Reagan Administration a group of people started meeting regularly to discuss what was going on and how best to coordinate efforts. This meeting is now known as the Wednesday Meeting and packs 150 plus advocates, politicians, and policy wonks into a meeting room each week to share ideas and strategies.
In Rhode Island, we have the Thursday Meeting (information linked below). Every month, our local groups-and sometimes national groups pay us a visit to get together and share what is important to them.
Social policy advocates share their meeting schedules and legislation of interest. Business groups share their concerns. Citizen groups even share what they find in their town and we all learn a little bit from each. And, we all look for ways to help each other and coordinate efforts towards similar goals. Not only do we all appreciate learning from other's experiences, but we also all understand what that donor I mentioned at the beginning of this article understands - that we can't change one system without changing them all.
But my parting words to that donor did surprise him. What I suggested was that he contact some friends and consider supporting others.
Obviously, I would want a donor or a volunteer to support OSPRI and the Hummel Report first, those being the two groups I am most intimately involved with. But I would also suggest that there are dozens of groups that could use support. Maybe policy and investigations aren't your thing, so consider supporting grassroots organizers such as the RI Tea Party or town-based groups such as taxpayer associations or local tea parties (most of the state's towns have them). Or maybe developing new politicians is your thing - consider supporting Operation Clean Government's Candidate School or a Political Action Committee associated with a particular issue that is important to you (such as gun rights, family issues, etc...). Whatever your thing is, do it. Send money, volunteer time, or at minimum, pray for us. But get involved, or, as the old saying goes, don't complain.
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