Collaborative decision-making (politics).

Voting for leaders in free elections has long been touted as a "democratic process."

The fact is that this is an anachronistic definition of democracy. Voting for leaders—even in free elections—is not democracy. A system of government that calls for a few officials to make unilateral decisions for millions of people can hardly be called democratic.

Government through leadership and representation—right or left— elected or imposed—is a form of private enterprise with its own vested interests—its own self-serving ideological and economic advantages— its unilateral exercise of power—the inevitable cult of personality.

Government through leadership automatically creates two distinct categories—leaders and followers. This in turn leads to unequal exercise of power.

Whether the right or the left wins elections does not redress this undemocratic imbalance. The decisions are still made by the leaders. (Governments in advanced industrial countries are losing power—not because of right or left reforms—but because of the decentralizing impact of the new information flow.)

The only way to transfer power to the people is to phase out all systems of government based on leadership and representation. De­mocracy in our times means voting—not for leaders—but voting di­rectly on issues.

This may not have been possible in the past. But today we have the electronic technology for such collaborative decision-making.

The growing number of referendums—ballot initiatives—propo­sitions—public opinion polls are steps toward the eventual creation of a political framework enabling people to participate directly in decision making.

Collaborative self-government is not only more democratic than all existing political systems. It is also a more rapid—efficient—depoli-ticized way of making decisions in our times.

These are some Up-Wing goals and priorities. There are others: globalism—telecommunities—twenty-first-century values and so on.

All the above priorities are interconnected. To advance rapidly in any one area we must leap ahead in all areas.

This new ideological trajectory is intended to bring us more freedom more abundance more leisure more fluidity more intimacy more growth.

Today as we hasten toward telespherization and global life—toward new sources of limitless abundance and new forms of limitless intelligence—toward transsolar colonies and immortality—we are reaching beyond conservative and liberal—beyond right and left.

We are moving Up.

Date: 2015-02-28; view: 721