[governance] Pro-multistakeholderist versus pro-democracy viewpoints

[Milton L Mueller]

It is amusing to think of Milton's concluding address back in Istanbul with his grandiose utopian libertarian call for a global digital citizenry. Nowadays, he seems to be afraid by his own dream turned nightmare. Because someone dropped a little democratic spice on it. His dream is suddenly being spoiled.

MM: Not at all. It's always had the spice, we just have different tastes.

First, I've been criticizing the term "MS" for years, I recognize its limitations and have stoutly resisted its transformation into a religion.

And as I said in Istanbul, a call for "MS governance" seems pallid compared to a call for a new global digital citizenry. In some sense this is a 'democratic' vision; however, I also noted that the prospects for new global institutions have to be built on these new, organically developed internet institutions because of the way they bypass existing power structures and create newer, more open participatory structures.

The reason I resist JNC-style calls for democracy, however, is (and I thought I explained this in my first post) that JNC seems to be advocating either a reassertion of state-based national government/multilateral 'democracy', or an isomorphic translation of 20th century nation state democracy to the global level. If that shoe doesn't fit you, or anyone else in JNC, don't wear it. I also don't see their version of democracy as sufficiently seasoned with liberalism, and democracy without liberalism is just mob rule, which on a global scale seems disastrous to me.

>From a terminological standpoint, I am much more interested in emphasizing individual rights than democracy, though democratic rights would be ok with me, and see territorial states, including the US, as the chief threats to those rights on the Internet.

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