Yes, how best to come together to add direct democracy to all our governments that lack it, when all powerful interests are opposed. That has been the question for a long time, but an obstacle that can and must be overcome if the country and species is to be pulled out of its planetary tailspin.
THANK YOU! Interesting documentary with (sadly) only a small number of views in the 12 years since it was made. I will send it around as best I can. There were many ideas I had not considered that I learned from seeing the video - particularly the manner in which the deliberative process promotes creativity, imagination and a sense of agency. I have thought about direct democracy on the local level, and believe that might be a starting point. In Northampton, Ma, the public schools have been ruined by funding cuts, and the available town cash funneled into business friendly projects. The town meetings overwhelmingly feature public support for school funding, but the elected politicians (with a few exceptions) are unresponsive to public opinion. I wrote an opinion piece in the local paper suggesting that the local school board and town counsel ought to be chosen via sortition, but such a proposal would take real grass roots organizing and pressure. BTW, are you the film maker? Well done if so! Direct democracy is an undernourished concept notably neglected on lefty platforms, and sometimes outright opposed by people who consider themselves progressive.
You raise good questions. If the masses of people were able to come together to agree that our current and dead system of Representative democracy (Republicans and Democrats)
is not working, people might be more open to a radical change. Perhaps protests,strike days,boycott etc. should focus on healing the divide and working toward Direct Democracy. We need a grassroots diverse community to create our own blue print for guiding this change. I like your idea that leftist writers, start making this case. Also artists,local businesses,Healthcare, etc. academia, community leaders, and members of marginalized groups get involved. Your article here should be published in mainstream media, but perhaps simplified. Your writing is terrific but can be somewhat literary and academic for a. Broader population to understand. No offense intended.
Yes, how best to come together to add direct democracy to all our governments that lack it, when all powerful interests are opposed. That has been the question for a long time, but an obstacle that can and must be overcome if the country and species is to be pulled out of its planetary tailspin.
Yes, how best to come together to add direct democracy to all our governments that lack it, when all powerful interests are opposed. That has been the question for a long time, but an obstacle that can and must be overcome if the country and species is to be pulled out of its planetary tailspin.
Here is an interesting movie on the topic:
https://documentaryheaven.com/its-time-we-talked/
THANK YOU! Interesting documentary with (sadly) only a small number of views in the 12 years since it was made. I will send it around as best I can. There were many ideas I had not considered that I learned from seeing the video - particularly the manner in which the deliberative process promotes creativity, imagination and a sense of agency. I have thought about direct democracy on the local level, and believe that might be a starting point. In Northampton, Ma, the public schools have been ruined by funding cuts, and the available town cash funneled into business friendly projects. The town meetings overwhelmingly feature public support for school funding, but the elected politicians (with a few exceptions) are unresponsive to public opinion. I wrote an opinion piece in the local paper suggesting that the local school board and town counsel ought to be chosen via sortition, but such a proposal would take real grass roots organizing and pressure. BTW, are you the film maker? Well done if so! Direct democracy is an undernourished concept notably neglected on lefty platforms, and sometimes outright opposed by people who consider themselves progressive.
You raise good questions. If the masses of people were able to come together to agree that our current and dead system of Representative democracy (Republicans and Democrats)
is not working, people might be more open to a radical change. Perhaps protests,strike days,boycott etc. should focus on healing the divide and working toward Direct Democracy. We need a grassroots diverse community to create our own blue print for guiding this change. I like your idea that leftist writers, start making this case. Also artists,local businesses,Healthcare, etc. academia, community leaders, and members of marginalized groups get involved. Your article here should be published in mainstream media, but perhaps simplified. Your writing is terrific but can be somewhat literary and academic for a. Broader population to understand. No offense intended.
You are right - direct democracy needs to be sold to the public. I have written about it with a pretty informal tone (https://www.resilience.org/stories/2024-03-22/invasion-of-the-body-snatchers-can-sortition-save-us-from-the-zombies-of-extinction/), but the whole thing needs to be explained in clear terms and mass marketed. I hope someone somewhere is up for the task.
Yes, how best to come together to add direct democracy to all our governments that lack it, when all powerful interests are opposed. That has been the question for a long time, but an obstacle that can and must be overcome if the country and species is to be pulled out of its planetary tailspin.
Here is an interesting movie on the topic:
https://documentaryheaven.com/its-time-we-talked/