There’s been quite a bit of debate on Th!nk3 about the rather simple idea for a financial transaction tax, aka Robin Hood Tax. One thing that they’ve missed is that this has been one heck of an online campaign. JP Siivonen got things going looking at the concepts and Andrei Tuch carried it on with what he called a Layman’s take on the Robin Hood Tax. Although I would say that if his piece is for the layman, he drinks in different pubs to me. Maria Kuecken followed it up with a quality post asking us to give Robin Hood a chance (well worth a read).

But I think that this campaign shows the power of the internet as a campaigning tool, to re-frame arguments and to potentially (so far) change lives around the world. After all the Robin Hood campaign wants money for "home and abroad". Basically, when used well, the internet allows us to reach new audiences and simplify concepts that were previously out of reach for most people. Major debates about economic policy are no longer the preserve of economists and academics. Normal people can vent their frustration at the injustice of the financial crisis and using the internet join together and campaign for change.

More frequently, governments and companies are being forced to bunker down as an internet storm envelops them. Recently Nestle have had a big social media '#fail' after they responded to the Greenpeace film (over 200,000 views) about their involvement in the destruction of the rainforests. Great film if you haven’t seen it! Famously Apple changed their environmental impact policy after people complained as part of an online campaign.

And then there’s Robin. They’ve got some great ingredients to work with. A celebrity launch with a cool film, some real public anger towards the banks and a very simple idea. This tiny 0.05% tax could change lives! But they’ve definitely taken advantage of all this! Over 74,000 people have voted in favour of it on the site, it was the top Twitter trend in the UK for days after the launch and over 150,000 people have joined a vibrant Facebook community.

But that only matters if it gets heard offline. Well it’s certainly reaching the corridors of power in the UK,  Gordon Brown called it a formidable online campaign. And why does he think that? Well, every MP in the UK has been contacted more than once about the campaign and over ¼ of the UK parliament has started to back it. The online momentum is being carried offline into real political action.

So far the campaign has caused a stir in the UK and now around Europe. Soon we'll know if this is enough to force a change in banking that gets some real money to change lives around the world.

Read Duncan Green's blog for the latest about the campaign