We the People ...

Do we have truly representative government in the USA? I suspect not. We have mostly what politicians produce & the M$M spins it to be. Voters then agree or disagree as the thinnest possible referendum on what the others produce. I suppose I should read Tocqueville & Plato to gather more Ethos, but I will defer that until I know what I am searching for right here, right now in the domain of Experience & Reality.

But first a brief announcement:

Thomas Paine - December 23, 1776 (Common Sense): ... THESE are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly: it is dearness only that gives every thing its value. Heaven knows how to put a proper price upon its goods; and it would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated.

... I deem Freedom to be the goal of Humanity while upon the Earth.

Some are gaming the system. Others do whatever it takes to keep their ruling class jobs in perpetuity. A good deal of what happens is irretrievably linked to money & power.

Fundamental to the struggle is defining what I want from a democracy & answering whether I want a democracy at all. RS seems to prefer a leaderless organization, non-hierarchical structure, at least in the area of economics, IMHO.

In a pure democracy the have-nots can gang up on the haves, like in 3 wolves and 2 sheep voting on what's for dinner, AND take from those who have. That is, if economics & the state are tied together as they are today.
True representation, as in no taxation without representation, might be a start except the problem begins with taxation. A good economy would produce more than is consumed so that those in need & those areas of special projects would be covered by the excess production from the excess of goods & services. That would require a change in the nature of capital. In a pot-luck dinner, sufficiently attended there always seems to be some left over. Then too, there is the parable of JC & the bread & fishes. As far as decentralization goes there is the metaphor of the starfish & the spider : (Wikipedia as well)

The problem with democracy & leaderless organizations as one must presume that they are composed of men & women of good will!

I haven't answered the question of do we want a democracy yet, but I will open it for discussion at this point. We did a pretty good experiment in San Francisco with Project II, but those days have faded - these times are different. Were there any lessons?

We the People ...

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