To stimulate discussion on the subject of "DEMOCRACY IN ACTION", Michael Macpherson wrote to several international internet discussion-lists about political participation, political science, information and society, electronic democracy
Dear colleagues, friends,
Request for information, suggestions for study and debate.
"Democracy aided by computer networks" is the subject of many current
discussions and practical, mainly experimental initiatives.
While these are to be welcomed, I suggest that there is a need for a
thorough inquiry and public debate about how democracies, as they now exist and function, should or can be improved.
This inquiry should address democratic systems in their entirety and not be limited only to the present or possibly expanded role of computers.
I am particularly interested in changes which allow citizens to participate more fully and more effectively in political decision making. It would be helpful if someone could summarise what proposals have been made to increase the responsible, "deliberated" participation of citizens in decision making in local, national and international systems. For instance, what is the modern version of a "town meeting"? How could "town meetings" be organised in a metropolis?
Existing publications about democracy tend to be dry and theoretical, not providing material which can be readily digested by a broader public. I am not suggesting that serious study and academic discourse are not important here. But I do suggest that they should be supplemented by some "living studies" of how democracy actually works or is hindered. What about a comparison of several democratic countries, showing real people acting as citizens and representatives, aiming to demonstrate advantages and disadvantages of different democratic forms? (Anyone who knows of such a study, or who would be interested to set one up, please contact me))
Should you wish to reply to a list, please send a copy of your message to
my e-mail address <mjm@berlin.snafu.de>.
Sincerely,
Michael.
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There were many interesting replies to this message, providing comments, pointing to books and journal articles, informing about projects in several countries. Some of these replies have been collected in
DEMOCRACY IN ACTION :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: DIGEST
hosted by my cyber-colleague John Gøtze in Denmark, URL http://www.gbar.dtu.dk/~itsjg/dia1.htm
contact: Dr. Michael Macpherson via e-mail, mjm@berlin.snafu.de
URL of this document is http://www.snafu.de/~mjm/s/d1 .html
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