[governance] California's Lessons for Iceland [and Internet Governance (implied)]

[Yehuda Katz]

I felt this article had some value when you make parallels too how Internet
Governance is handled, within various bodies.

...
It is a popular misconception to refer to most Western countries as
"democracies." In fact, they all are some sort of representative democracy.
There have been no direct democracies in the West of any importance since
Alexander the Great took Athens. Like the United States, Iceland is a republic;
article I of the Icelandic Constitution states: "Iceland is a Republic with a
parliamentary government." 

The rationale for a representative democracy is that the issues facing a
government are too varied and detailed to expect the electorate to adequately
study each issue. The fear is that modern propaganda can be used to bamboozle
the masses into agreeing to laws that are not in their best interest or to
permit a small dedicated group to bind the entire population when there is low
voter turnout, which is how Hitler and Mussolini, for example, seized and
maintained power. The creation of a professional political class is (in an
ideal world) supposed to ensure that dedicated individuals are able to devote
their full efforts to determining the nation's optimal goals and how to achieve
them. 
...

The Author in regards to 'Referendum Processes' makes note by example of the
California Legislature, that a referendum process can also have its problematic
limits.

-

California's Lessons for Iceland
by Iris ErlingsdottirIcelandic journalist and writer
The Huffington Post | January 31, 2010
http://www.huffingtonpost.com 

Art.Ref.:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/iris-lee/californias-lessons-for-i_b_443449.html

Print:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/iris-lee/californias-lessons-for-i_b_443449.html?view=print

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