FAQ
Frequently asked questions answered in the hope you have all the information you need to survive and thrive.
What is Democracy?
We have a good definition in our Lexicon supplied by the Federal Government through the Museum of Australian Democracy in Canberra. Australia is not a Democracy, it is a Parliamentary Democracy where we have given our franchise to vote to “representatives” who engage and vote on our behalf. This is a historical necessity born of the success of a society built on cooperative decision making and action, that grew too large for the technologies of communication that allowed effective contribution, deliberation and voting in a Democracy.
Why change the system of Government?
The American founding father’s recognised the implicit ‘threat’ present in ‘representative democracy’, the inevitable corruption that filters executive authority into the hands of too few who accrue draconian powers and implement a Tyranny. Enter the 2nd amendment constitutional right to bear arms and raise a militia to take back government (Democracy) from the Tyrants, such as Nazis
May I suggest evolution over revolution, unless we absolutely must?
The current and ongoing party system has become so corrupted that it is now the exclusive domain of two massively dominant parties, corporations with minuscule actual membership wielding disproportionate power and influence. They are more attuned to the needs of their corporate mates than any awareness of the individual human needs of constituents and communities.
They are, in effect and action, Elected Dictatorships, for the term of their governments of increasing secrecy and diminishing responsibility, accountability or transparency.
We believe it is both technically and practically possible to eliminate the executive branches of Parliament and replace control of our Civil Services with direct control of the constituencies they serve. Our proposal is based on the “election” of outstanding candidates to head the Civil Services and deliver on the platform they were elected on with full authorisation and overview of the electorate.
EVERYTHING has changed with technology BUT one – POLITICS – It has become a vast expensive historic pantomime playing an endless season with the same characters passing down the generational line. We’re still marking pieces of paper with pencils while we can transfer billions in milliseconds, securely and privately. Go figure?
The real power is in the vote, use it regularly and we’ll all enjoy a happier life together.
What happens when very few people participate?
Democracy is dependent on participation, it always works better with more people involved. At present we make life-changing decisions by proxy with the representation of between 9 people (in my Shire Council) to several hundred in the Federal House of Reps. Proportionally VERY low numbers of people decide.
Let’s not be swayed by the impression these are experts. Representation is supposedly about recruiting across class, race, education, IQ and sex to deliver a “representative” mix to “represent” the choices we, the electorate would make if we had the choice.
Our system Guarantees a decision every time there’s a poll. At the end of the polling period (nom. 30 Days) we take the simple majority of 50% + 1 vote of the number who voted eg:
My local shire holds a poll on the annual report and recommendations from the Streetlighting sub committee.
12 total vote count out of a pool of 16000
2 said No to the Proposal.
9 said Yes to the Proposal.
1 said Undecided.
The Proposal is carried by Yes with a clear majority of 7 and the Proposal is immediately enacted. We observe the consequences and hope not too many people come undone in the dark of the vote that switched off the streetlights at 10pm- hypotheticals.
the reality - that’s 3 more decision makers than the average Council meeting.
The beauty of a Democracy is that decisions get made quickly and efficiently. We see a result and consequence and if it proves to be “harmful” then correction is as simple and effective as another Proposal with debate and Poll. Sorry is for politicians.
“The results show that: (1) under relatively common conditions, increasing the size of the crowd may actually reduce performance; (2) near-optimal performance can usually be achieved by a much smaller crowd than the one required to achieve optimal performance; (3) determining the best crowd size depends critically on the firm’s ability to recruit “accurate” individuals; and (4) good performance does not require large crowds unless all population members exhibit low levels of accuracy.”
Limits to the Wisdom of the Crowd in Idea Selection
Felipe A. Csaszar, Organization Design, ISBN: 978-1-78756-330-8, 10 December 2018
The measure of the success of a Democracy is your Happiness and well being
Is this system hackable and is my data secure?
Every system is hackable. We will endeavour to maintain the security of your data to the best of our capabilities and it is incumbent on you to be aware of and report any issues you are having or any suspicious behaviour from others in relation to your use of the services we provide.
All transactions transmitted via the banking system are covered by the laws and penalties applicable to banking and finance. The banking system provides statements that should assist you in monitoring the truth of transaction records when compared to your account details within the Pollee services.
We are developing a DLT (blockchain) based process to run in parallel with the bank transaction that will enable end to end encryption services and immutable record of any event you are participating in. This is essentially based on you as an individual being fully in control of your unique digital identity.
Can minorities take control?
Yes, it is absolutely possible, as we are human. It happens now, it will always be a threat that is only ever neutralised through the strong sunlight of transparency, the hard limits of Law backed by the will of the courts and agencies and the tonic of Truth and verifiable information applied to a decision that makes the change in their fortunes.
Democracy means we will make mistakes. It also means that we can collectively acknowledge the harm done by a decision and immediately raise a Proposal to reverse or modify the harmful choice.
Apathy is a choice. Through not participating the apathetic allow vocal and active minorities to gain power and advantage out of the system. The redeeming fact is that while the constitution guarantees a free and popular vote there’s always the choice to regain a happier equilibrium with a Poll.
Democracy is inherently Dynamic in nature and the life of an Issue will swing through a succession of proposals with a slowly diminishing period and amplitude of consequence over time until it achieves a state of equilibrium or consensus (given stable forces or influences driving the Issue).
Both pleasure and pain drive evolution.
How does this end in good government with “The Mob” in control?
The Mob is us. If our society wasn’t based on the general acceptance of morality, adherence to the law, respect for cooperation, nothing would work and it would be a world of Mad Max and worse.
In this proposal, I trust the many years I’ve walked the planet to reveal that despicable, irredeemably evil people make up a tiny fraction of humanity. The vast bulk of humanity vacillates on a momentary basis between their angelic or demonic state, capable of acts that harm or heal and are predominantly driven by the desire to not be harmed or do harm to others. Most people are capable of communicating across a variety of mediums and given a common language of exchange, are able to receive information, form an opinion and express it.
Today we rely on our “news” sources to deliver information on issues that we may not directly engage with or have experience of. This is problematic in our contemporary world where large corporations have dominant control over the media with little respect for editorial independence.
Our dream is to replace the power of these media giants with the distributed power of a network of Informarians who provide real and honest witness and reportage on the Issues, proposals and consequences. The big media players may still influence many but we will be bearing witness to the consequences and the costs of indulging their whims. Next time you know how “truthful” they have been when you’re using their information to form an opinion or decide a vote.
There are quite a few empirical studies that demonstrate that “the Mob” does a far better job than our legislatures for far less cost, in a shorter time and with far greater support and satisfaction from the public.
https://cognitiveresearchjournal.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s41235-020-00248-z
https://people.eng.unimelb.edu.au/vkostakos/files/papers/bhci16.pdf
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0956797620941840
How does society function?
Same as today. Nothing but the content of our Parliaments and Council Chambers change, we give all those parties members their one vote and send them back to good, honest and useful lives in the community and away from harm.
Civil Services at every level continue responding to or engineering our reality and we get to help decide the agenda, contribute to the proposal, add to the discussion and ultimately make the decision on what happens.
We replace a Society that is now heavily dependent on distraction (as in addiction) and entertainments, with a community that puts real value on an individual’s contributions in conversation, in creating proposals and in voting.
Our world needs to expand and accept that it’s OK to discuss sex, politics and religion at the dining table because it is no longer a matter of war between two tribes but a discussion that ends in learning, giving and action. Win, lose, there’s always another day.
Sports and betting are distractions, use the brainpower, money, time and attention to build a better world and maybe, instead of just watching, get out there and play a game!
US Gov.com fact:
“Adults with excess weight are at even greater risk during the COVID-19 pandemic: Having obesity increases the risk of severe illness from COVID-19. People who are overweight may also be at increased risk. Having obesity may triple the risk of hospitalization due to a COVID-19 infection.” CDC website 2021 Front page news.