[governance] RE: [NA-Discuss] ALAC and NCUC

[David Goldstein]

I totally agree with Dan here. McTim is wrong.

There is no practical way on earth that everyone can or will participate in discussions on internet governance. Sure, they may be welcome too, but they won't no matter what. They have other priorities - families and work for example, then there's lack of interest and lack of knowledge.

You may well want a utopia McTim, but we also have to deal with reality. Your reality will never happen.

But what needs to happen is to get the best representation from as broad a cross section of people as possible.

Cheers
David

----- Original Message ----
From: Dan Krimm <dan at musicunbound.com>
To: governance at lists.cpsr.org
Sent: Saturday, 21 April, 2007 5:42:53 PM
Subject: Re: [governance] RE: [NA-Discuss] ALAC and NCUC

At 10:14 AM +0300 4/21/07, McTim wrote:

>> There are distinct limits to "self-responsibility" in even the most
>> democratic governance processes.  There is an ineliminable collective
>> component to governance in any equitable society, where some people must
>> take responsibility for protecting the interests of others.
>
>In my Utopia, people take the responsibility to represent themselves
>on an issue they are interested in.  Why is a collective component
>needed, just becasue that's what we are used to having?


No, not out of mere habit, but because "self interest" ultimately does not
and cannot reach out to the full range of societal interests.  Private
markets are inherently incomplete with respect to addressing public goods
and externalities, and only collective structures of political
representation can address those interests.  Privatization has its distinct
and insurmountable limits.

In short, there are some societal interests that are irreducibly collective
in nature, and no amount of self help will address them at all.  Radical
individualism is a recipe for societal disaster.

I would characterize your "utopia" as a dystopia.

And at this point I would suggest that we agree to disagree, as it's late
out on the Pacific Coast and I have a full day offline tomorrow...  ;-)

Dan
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