[governance] Criterion for charter voting

[Deirdre Williams]

It seems to me that "democracies" begin with an agreement or a charter or a
constitution which is exclusive in that it defines the "demos" - the one man
that gets the one vote - and excludes everyone else. The nature of "us" and
"them" changes over time but there is always a "them" who are excluded.
The IGC, having a charter, has defined its rules for voting, and until such
time as those rules are changed it seems logical that it should obey its own
rules.
My own feeling is that the agreement or charter or constitution needs to be
treated with great care to make it light enough to allow for freedom of
movement. Armour is counterproductive when it becomes so heavy that you
cannot lift your arm to defend yourself. And the armour cannot be
sufficiently heavy to completely obviate the need for self-defense unless it
rules out individual freedoms completely.
The model that I can imagine is beginning to emerge in governance, Internet
and otherwise, is a model of governance by negotiation and collaboration
rather than by stipulation. The emerging democracy would then need
no agreement or charter or constitution because it would be inclusive and
therefore truly democratic.
Might take a long time ... but a dream worth dreaming?
Deirdre


Paul Lehto, J.D.



>
> P.S. Ultimately, it is only this "nebulous" idea of the spirit that
> keeps the life and intent in any text or words. To see what I mean,
> read the Constitution of the soviet union which seems very well
> drafted indeed, I'd say better than the USA's, but it doesn't seem to
> have been followed much.  And now the USA Constitution has seen better
> days as the eagerness to punish overwhelms the spirit of liberty.
>
>
> --
“The fundamental cure for poverty is not money but knowledge" Sir William
Arthur Lewis, Nobel Prize Economics, 1979
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