Who Are We
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American society is usually way off target when understanding Anarchism. Anarchism simply means “without hierarchy”. A world without rulers and bosses. Oh my!
We actually owe a great deal of thanks to the centuries of Anarchists. These folks have vigorously critiqued the power structures in every form of government and society. They have shone a light on the pain and suffering, that has resulted from abuse of power. As philosophers they look at the whole of human history, and see the repetition of tragedy associated with authority given to people and to institutions.
We are not talking about small things. This abuse of power is the cause of wars, like the 10 million dead soldiers in WWI, plus the 7 million WWI civilians killed, and the death of millions more from disease and starvation. These victims did not vote to go to war.
The Anarchists have come to the conclusion that people cannot be trusted with power. Similarly, we have our saying… “Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.”
Anarchists, in their philosophy, try as best as they can to eliminate every authority and source of power. They challenge the authority that men have given themselves over women. Anarchists have taken a deep look at our culture, and their insight cannot be dismissed.
You might be surprised, though, that Anarchists strongly support collectivism. They envision people working together to make decisions, to cooperatively manage our world with the people’s voice.
As to the Decision Website and also Direct Democracy, they are basically in-line with this thinking. Yet they know how every attempt at better democracy either got co–opted by the existing power structure, or resulted in mere small improvements. Anarchists will be the ones that push back whenever we create rules that are unnecessary. Anarchists will point out that we often sacrifice freedom in order to obtain safety and structure. Anarchists believe in people over power structures. Their input will be valuable.
Anarchists hesitate to create a detailed plan for the future, because the whole of the people have not yet given their input. And so, the Decision Website is that tool that lets everyone speak. Anarchists will disagree with some structure laid out in these articles, especially when they perceive the continued existence of a “state” regardless of how democratized and improved. However, Anarchists want to be heard. My hope is that they see the Decision Website as a tool to facilitate cooperation among people, and a platform to present their ideals.
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Globalism has been tricky to talk about since very few of us know anything about it. Plus it is riddled with conspiracy theory and has been more of an understated or hidden direction. But it may be the way we are headed now, especially as it rallies behind the name Stakeholder Capitalism.
Globalism is that general idea that given the interconnectedness of the world, there should be governing bodies for the entire globe. Some emphasis is political, such as with the United Nations (UN) and the European Union (EU). Other aspects focus on economics with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank, international trade agreements, and Stakeholder Capitalism, which is promoted by the World Economic Forum.
The economic focus of globalism makes it tricky. There are some tempting carrots being offered like steering companies towards better behavior. But the problem is that influence over economics subtly interconnects with sway over politics and government. And it all tilts the scale away from democracy.
Globalism is another layer above our national government that essentially puts us citizens further from real decision-making. Then, considering the fact that we are not in real control of our own national government, Globalism and Stakeholder Capitalism are the wrong answer for the people.
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Another part of the underlying ideology of Globalism is that a more qualified group of people, experts and scientists and technocrats, should make decisions for our world. On the surface, it seems to have some merit, but the risk is too great when we lose democratic control. It is a better solution to strengthen our democracy and devise a way for ideas to be publically and transparently debated. Let those experts submit their ideas and insight into our debate system so their opinions can both be presented to us and also be challenged.
We might be surprised how many of our politicians, Republican and Democrat, support the Globalism concept. That said, very few common citizens understand the term, nor list themselves as globalists. We should simply recognize that Globalism and Stakeholder Capitalism is an emerging direction, and an unacceptable move away from true democracy.
Is it too optimistic to think that some people currently leaning towards Globalism would change course towards the new idea of the Decision Website? The only reason they would not like to hear the citizen’s opinions and see us gain influence is if they are mostly interested in keeping power for themselves.
Theories of conspiracy often see a sinister elite involved at the top of the Globalism movement. That could be true, and it could pose a grave danger. Regardless, a natural consequence of Globalism and Stakeholder Capitalism is an elite class at the top of an obscure complex governance of the economy and possibly the world. We should at least be very attentive to the trends we see that could be undermining our rights.
But as a first course of action for us, Globalism does not have to be untangled, or at least is a different battle. We will only be spinning our wheels in the midst of the secrecy, and thus further deepen the division between the citizenry. Our course of action should be the path to assert our voice, gain control, and improve our democracy with the Decision Website technique.
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Nationalists would say, “Let’s take care of the U.S. first and ensure our interests are met. That sounds reasonable.
In a broader view, it is a local versus regional, state versus national, and national versus global kind of thinking. But we cannot deny our interconnectedness. We need to achieve the proper balance when we make laws and policies, and still protect individual rights. Our debate in the Decision Website is needed to achieve this balance.
Nationalism and Globalism are an interesting debate. In current world affairs, nationalism is seen as a counter-action to globalism. Nationalists tend to believe in the conspiracy aspect, and believe that the globalists have created a secret power base deep in our government agencies. The idea is that there is a cabal or a wealthy elite at the top. The theory lacks tangible proof, but who can say there is not some truth?
Consequently, nationalists want to doggedly resist globalism by looking out for our national interests first. The problem with nationalism is that it doesn’t fix anything in regards to the flaws in our national government and giving back control to citizens. Nationalists, with their love of democracy and freedom, should support the Decision Website.
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On other points, nationalism has some problematic issues as seen below. It’s quite possible that the Decision Website can help sort these out.
First, when you get too nationalistic, it’s easy to get a hostile attitude towards other countries and immigrants. It becomes easier to blame someone else for the country’s problems. Racism even gets a foothold when you think that your race is the country’s natural occupant.
It’s not easy to sort through this “us” versus “them” mentality, because we all have tendencies to feel most comfortable with people just like ourselves. And if you think this is just a nationalist problem, then you are due for some deeper introspection. The Decision Website can help us navigate these issues to reach logical, communal, and consistent perspectives.
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Another strange trait of nationalism has been the willingness of proponents to follow strong leaders. It’s as if a robust strong leader is the only way to protect national interest. But this trait of lifting up leaders has been devastating throughout history, and it’s why nationalism often gets linked to fascism.
What makes it strange is that U.S. nationalists equate themselves to patriots because of their love of country. If you need people to stand up and protect your country, these are the folks to have. Plus, nationalists tend to be big advocates of individual freedom. It’s the 1776 style of patriots and the love of freedom that do not match well with giving leaders more power. That’s why it’s the Decision Website, and its pathway to a stronger democracy, that makes more sense for nationalists.
The Decision Website is the answer for nationalists. An improved democracy is the way we solve our country’s problems. It is how we give ourselves more individual freedoms and a stronger voice.
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There are many flavors of socialism. For simplicity and for the purposes of promoting the Decision Website, I am going to divide them into two categories: safety net socialism and full socialism.
Safety-net socialism looks to help the stressed lives of people who do not fit well or who suffer under the capitalist economy. It may be a lack of jobs, stifled opportunity, personality traits, etc. These socialists focus on compassion to push for monetary support to lessen the burden. Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, welfare, food stamps, workman’s compensation, unemployment insurance, disability, and family tax credits are all examples of safety-net socialism.
Future benefits like free tuition, the UBI Universal Basic Income, and universal health care are examples as well. It is hard to believe that there is a safety-net socialist out there who wouldn’t want a stronger democracy or a better understanding of their ideals among the citizenry. The Decision Website can do that for them.
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Full socialists want to push towards a sharing economy where the profit motives and competitiveness of capitalism are removed. It’s an ideology to create more equality among people. Full socialists need a strong democracy to be the backbone of politics, because we’ve seen the drawbacks of authoritarian socialism and communism. They also need a platform to explain their proposed economic system to citizens.
In addition, the Decision Website model can serve as a method to democratize the workplace, plus be a communication tool to facilitate a stronger market component and people’s voice into the socialist economic system.
That said, why wouldn’t proponents of any brand of socialism be enthusiastic for the Decision Website.
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