WHAT IS DEMOCRACY?
IF YOU WERE A MACHINE
Democracy would mean informing you about matters of common interest, with the ability to build inclusive consensus about using collective, or public, wealth and power.
BUT YOU ARE NOT A MACHINE
YOU ARE HUMAN
AND IN HUMAN COMMUNITIES
DEMOCRACY IS THE ABILITY TO CONSCIOUSLY GOVERN THE USE OF COLLECTIVE POWER AND WEALTH
DEMOCRACY DEPENDS ON MEDIA
MEDIA INFORMS YOUR VALUES, DESIRES AND AMBITIONS
MEDIA AND THE MEDIUM EVOLVE
THE COMMERIAL MEDIUM
IS DESIGNED TO MANIPULATE PUBLIC CONSCIOUSNESS
THE MEDIUM IS A MESSAGE
(Marshall McLuhan)
A MEDIUM DESIGNED FOR ADVERTISING
WILL NOT SUPPORT DEMOCRACY
YOU SEE IMAGES OF POVERTY-AFFLUENCE-INJURED CHILDREN-STARVING FAMILIES-GENOCIDE-CLIMATE CHANGE-WARS-PANDEMIC–EARTHQUAKE-TORNADO-INFLATION-CORRUPTION-INCOMPETENCE
YOU CAN DO NOTHING ABOUT THESE THINGS
SOMETHING IS VERY WRONG
AND YOU CAN DO NOTHING ABOUT IT
AND THAT IS THE MESSAGE – OR PART OF IT
MESSAGE OF THE COMMERCIAL MEDIUM
YOU ARE YOUR CIRCUMSTANCES YOUR CREDIT HISTORY YOUR NET WORTH YOUR CAR YOUR AVAILABLE BALANCE YOUR COLLEGE DEGREE YOUR CLOTHES YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD YOUR GENDER YOUR HAIRCUT
YOU ARE/ARE NOT AMERICAN
RICH LIGHT-SKINNED PEOPLE ARE IN CHARGE
TRUST NO POLITICIANS – GOD IS DEAD
IN CONTRAST
THE MESSAGE OF POPULAR MUSIC
TELLS YOU THAT YOU ARE NOT YOUR CIRCUMSTANCES
YOU ARE HOPEFUL LOVING LOVED INSPIRED
RELATED
EQUAL IN THE EYES OF GOD
THE MEDIUM CREATES NORMS
WHO DEFERS TO WHOM
WHO RUNS FOR OFFICE WHAT DEFINES A MAN WHAT DEFINES A WOMAN BEHAVIOR THAT’S NOT TOLERATED THE BEAUTIFUL THE REPULSIVE GOOD TASTE BAD TASTE
WHO IS CENSORED – DENOUNCED
ALGORITHM OF YOUR NEWS FEED
TRENDING MELODRAMAS
THE INVISIBLE BUREAUCRACY
MANY IRREFUTABLE IF NONSENSICAL IDEAS
MESSAGES OF COMMERCIAL MEDIA
YOUR OPTIONS ARE LIMITED
THERE IS NO TIME
YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE
The current population of the Americas—North America, Central America, the Caribbean, and South America—is approximately 1,062,000,000
MOST ARE AVAILABLE TO YOU ONLY THROUGH REPRESENTATION AND IMAGINATION
YOU ARE 8,314,913,500 DIVERSE HUMAN LIVES
YOU LIVE IN 2.5 TO 4.3 MILLION GEOGRAPHIC COMMUNITIES
YOU SPEAK MORE THAN 7,200 KNOWN LANGUAGES
THE UNITED NATIONS RECOGNIZES 193 NATION STATES
YOU LIVE ON A PLANET IN A GALAXY CALLED THE MILKY WAY
MEDIA INFORMS YOUR BELIEFS
SHAPES YOUR PERCEPTIONS
(WHAT IS POSSIBLE FOR YOU – IT IS ALL MADE UP)
MEDIA CREATES ILLUSIONS
*PAY TO PLAY*
THE POLITICAL WILL OF YOUR REPUBLIC
MEDIA IS
AN INSTITUTIONALLY CREATED REALITY
Why are some rewarded?
Whom do we listen to-why?
The assumption that posts on social media are evidence of public authorization.is a costly mistake.
THIS MISTAKE IS CORRECTABLE
Political will is by definition the conscious expression of a community about collective authorization of its public power.
WHEN YOU DON’T AUTHORIZE COLLECTIVE POWER
THE WEALTH AND POWER
OF A REPUBLIC
DEFAULTS TO OWNERS OF THE MEDIA
(WHO REALLY OWNS THE PRESS – THE OCEAN – THE STARS)
WHO DECIDES FACES WE SEE IN MEDIA?
ELON MUSK-PETER THEIL-HARVEY WEINSTEIN-BIBI NETENYAHU-RICHARD NIXON
J.D. VANCE-JOE BIDEN, KAMALA HARRIS, BRUCE ARNOLD, JEFF BEZOS,
WHY ARE MACHINES INFORMING YOUR DESIRE?
WHO MANIPULATES YOUR FEELINGS?
WHY CALL THESE ALGORITHMS ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE?
THE MESSAGE OF THE MEDIUM
IS AN ADDICTIVE NARRATIVE
CODED BY AN ALGORITHM
THAT IS FED YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION
IT DOESN’T KNOW YOU OR CARE ABOUT YOU OR YOUR LIFE
NOR ABOUT YOUR HAPPINESS
IT ISN’T CONSCIOUS OR INTELLIGENT
IT IS CODE
GLOBAL PLATFORMS
ARE CENTRALLY CONTROLLED
ALGORITHMS
NO MORAL CODE
NO ETHICS
NO PROBLEM
(FOR TECHNOLOGY COMPANIES)
MEDIA IS POLITICAL- IT SHAPES PERCEPTIONS
By selecting, arranging, and representing reality
THE MEDIA WE EXPERIENCE SHAPES OUR PERCEPTIONS
MEDIA SUGGESTS YOU CAUSED CLIMATE CHANGE
ACTUALLY YOU ARE SOLD CARS
AND A HIGH ENERGY LIFESTYLE
SUPPOSEDLY TO MAKE YOUR LIFE WORK
YOU ARE NOT INFORMED ABOUT
FOSSIL FUEL EMISSIONS
BEFORE THE SHINE ON THE CAR FADES
YOU LEARN THAT YOU MUST ADAPT
(PAY FOR THE DAMAGE)
STREAMING MEDIA
LEADS YOU TO CREATE A WORLD
WITH A TRILLION $ WAR INDUSTRY
NO HEALTHCARE
UNAFFORDBLE RENTS
POOR EDUCATION
GENOCIDE!
HUNGER, POVERTY, GLOBAL WARMING
YOU ARE NOT TO BLAME!
MEDIA CREATES ILLUSIONS
MEDIA SUGGESTS DIFFERENCES BETWEEN POLITICAL PARTIES
COMMERCIAL MEDIA
WAS DESIGNED FOR ADVERTISERS
WHO TAKE NO RESPONSIBILITY
FOR EFFECTS OF THEIR PROMOTIONS
THEY LOBBIED CONGRESS
TO REMOVE THE GUARDRAILS
(THEY WERE BAD FOR BUSINESS)
WITH A SYSTEM DESIGNED TO EXPLOIT IGNORANCE
Circumstances that are presented as reality in “official” media are produced through human institutions and decisions, with the public in the role of observer and reactor rather than author.
What do you know about the national debt?
THE U.S. NATIONAL DEBT EXCEEDS $40 TRILLION
TAXPAYERS PAY ABOUT A TRILLION DOLLARS
INTEREST ON THE NATIONAL DEBT
TO WHOM?
When did the public authorize bombing Palestine?
Did we chooose to increase our risk of nuclear proliferation?
POLITICIANS DON’T FORGET TO ASK
WHAT YOU WANT
THEY ARE NOT REQUIRED TO ASK YOU
IT’S NOT IN THEIR JOB DESCRIPTION
AND COULD BE INCONVENIENT FOR DONORS
THIS IS THE SYSTEM, WORKING NORMALLY
WAR — CLIMATE — FAMINE — PUBLIC DEBT — DEVELOPMENT
DECISIONS ARE BEING MADE
CONSEQUENCES ARE BEING PRODUCEDWHAT HAVE WE UNDERSTOOD?
WHAT HAVE WE AUTHORIZED?
YOU ARE NOT TO BLAME FOR THIS
BUT YOU CAN DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT
GLOBAL CONDITIONS EMERGE FROM LOCAL DECISIONS
GLOBAL PROBLEMS ARE CREATED
BY LOCAL DECISIONS
ALL POLITICS IS LOCAL
Local land use policy, investment, regulation, development,
infrastructure and institutional priorities have consequences.
COMMERCIAL MEDIA HAS MADE US OBSERVERS AND REACTORS,
RATHER THAN AUTHORS OF OUR LIVES
THE MESSAGE OF COMMERCIAL MEDIA
IS THAT WE CAN’T CHANGE OUR CIRCUMSTANCES
HOWEVER
CHANGING THE MEDIUM
NEVER BEFORE IN HUMAN HISTORY
have people been inclusively engaged with guiding their government…
Never before was it possible
Plato gave up on democracy because it couldn’t be done
NOW WITH TECHNOLOGY
WE CAN HAVE DEMOCRACY
NOT A MOMENT TOO SOON
Democracy is a community’s capacity
to consciously
exercise its collective power.
DEMOCRACY REQUIRES LOCAL INFRASTRUCTURE
*POLITICS IS LOCAL*
COORDINATED ACTION NETWORKS
*CAN*
CAN is infrastructure for communication through which a community can become conscious of itself, people can exercise agency and responsibility, and together consciously nurture and care for life within, around, and affected by it.
A BREAKTHROUGH WITH CLOUD TECHNOLOGY
DEMOCRATIC AUTHORIZATION OF PUBLIC POWER
The measure of a community is not how efficiently it governs itself,
but how well it cares for people generally
and nurtures its children specifically.
ON THE CUSP OF INTENTIONAL DESIGN
AN INTENTIONALLY POLITICAL MEDIUM
Not merely more and better content
CAN
Communication makes agency and responsibility possible.
Agency and responsibility make intentional care possible.
The legacy commercial medium was optimized for ads to manipulate consumers and incite public reaction.
CAN IS OPTIMIZED FOR ITS USERS
CAN serves its community by providing a medium through which the community can see and understand circumstances, form judgments about them, establish authentic political will, authorize action, and coordinate power.
Politically, the power of community appears as collective authorization.
Spiritually, its power appears when separate lives become meaningful in relation to one another.
COORDINATED ACTION NETWORKS
INFRASTRUCTURE FOR DEMOCRACY
CAN changes people from objects ofå institutional action into organized agents
capable of authorizing collective power.
THE PEOPLE SET THE AGENDA
YOU SHOW UP
On your community’s platform
YOU LISTEN
Problems, ideas, concerns
Personal experience
YOU SPEAK
Find common interests
Challenge assumptions
QUESTION
Find out what holds up
PROPOSE/DISCUSS
Negotiate
Challenge
Propose
BUILD CONSENSUS
A collective voice
AUTHORIZE
Coordinate resources
PRESERVE PLURALITY
CAN HELPS DEVELOP RESOURCES AND TALENT
COORDINATED ACTION NETWORKS
TECHNOLOGY FOR DEMOCRATIC INFRASTRUCTURE
A process through which people
share reliable information;
trade experiences and goods
identify uncertainties;
examine objectives, alternatives, risks, and consequences;
aggregate power
hear different points of view;
make agreements; define differences; create boundaries;
authorize common priorities, and set limits;
Coordinate resources and action;
preserve commitments and public records; and
hold institutions and representatives accountable
LIFE-SAVING COORDINATION IN EMERGENCIES
maintain communication
coordinate volunteers
communities support others
share vital resources
facilitate government efforts
CAN EMPOWERS COLLECTIVE ACTION
HELP IMPLIES DISABILITY
Historically, philanthropy follows a familiar structure:
Funders identify a problem.
Organizations design an intervention.
Institutions allocate resources.
People receive services.
Success is measured in beneficiaries reached.
Relieving suffering does not change who holds the power to make consequential decisions
CAN is not principally an intervention delivered to underserved people.
CAN is infrastructure through which people cease to occupy the institutional category of “underserved beneficiaries.”
CAN participants define the problem, establish what is true, determine priorities, make consequential choices, coordinate resources, and hold institutions accountable.
PLAYAS DE TIJUANA
DEVELOPERS WANT TO BUILD 9 HIGHRISE TOWERS WITH 1600 UPSCALE APARTMENTS, AND A HOTEL AND SHOPPING MALL
IN A CONSERVATION AREA
Water & energy outages are already frequent
Traffic is already intolerable
RESIDENTS ARE OBJECTING
THE COMMUNITY ISN’T ORGANIZED
The community remains inside the process the development system already knows how to defeat: hearings, objections, petitions, scattered evidence, procedural delay and exhaustion.
When we have a say in development decisions
Development is sustainable
When communities can sustain themselves
GLOBAL COOLING IS INDEPENDENTLY ACTIONABLE
COLONIAL RELATIONSHIPS DON’T BEGIN WITH MALICIOUS INTENTION
“BANALITY OF EVIL” – HANNAH ARENDT
Food, housing, healthcare, education and emergency assistance are essential.
Charity reflects kind intentnion but is not self-government
A community should not have to be powerless to qualify for help.
CAN makes collective agency itself the infrastructure
Communities must be actors, not waiting for handouts.
Actions that produce or reverse global warming are local
Community consensus can drive and fund coordinated action
Homes can be affordable
Communities can be livable
Childcare can support parents
Parks can be preserved
Local economies can thrive
Government decisions must serve the governed
What people agree on—right now, moving the world
CAN’s architecture does not assume that today’s human institutions, today’s internet, or today’s electromagnetic communications represent the final form of intelligent relationship.
THE MEDIUM IS EVOLVING
CAN is not designed around any particular communications technology. CAN is an architecture through which autonomous communities can understand themselves, build consensus, create wealth, carry out plans, create shared identity and document provenance, negotiate relationships and boundaries, establish consent, coordinate consequential action and preserve autonomy.
COORDINATED ACTION NETWORKS
TECHNOLOGY FOR A DEMOCRATIC CIVIC MEDIUM
Communications infrastructure through which people in communities can cooperate, establish legitimate relationships, and coordinate consequential action without surrendering individual autonomy
CAN is beginning with geographically-bounded human communities–not as a limit, but as a way to understand how a medium empowers responsibility