Talk:New Tools of democracy
From BeyondVoting
One of the major constituents of a democracy at this point is a wired commons, public access everywhere and for everyone. As you know, Verizon has seen otherwise; not only is it litigating against free access in any number of cities (and with for example the governor of Pennsylvania) - it is also eliminating free access in the NYC region as we speak. The ability to go online, from cellphone, PDA, Blackberry, laptop, etc., is critical, not only to open discussion, but to communication in an emergency - i.e. where the traditional phonelines might be down. Ham radio used to provide limited grids for emergency communication - but this was dependent on licensing and considerabe technological know-how. What surprises me, in light of these proposals on the wiki is the absence of WiFi, particularly in regard to what is amounting to the usual corporate take-over. How, if at all, does WiFi fit into the model.
Alan Sondheim, sondheim@panix.com
Desirable or Critical?
Alan,
I think we differ. I'm totally with you when you say we need to max out with access to emergency information. I think there should be a big scull and bones on any communications device that doesn't provide access to emergency services.
But I'm big on deliberation. And while access from everywhere has its benefits, I don't see it as imperative in the governance process. Sure, everyone needs electronic access to be an active citizen...
more later... Tom Lowenhaupt