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This article really misses the point of how democracies break. Disinformation, corruption, capture of the judiciary, gaming of electoral systems, poor campaign

This article really misses the point of how democracies break. Disinformation, corruption, capture of the judiciary, gaming of electoral systems, poor campaign finance regulations and voter suppression are all key factors that have contributed to democracy backsliding in different nations across the world. All of these issues stem from systems of government and representation that are not properly balanced or lack safeguards from abuse and manipulation. Voter education, competency and participation are also absolutely fundamental to having a healthy democracy. Quadratic voting cannot fix these issues and we should instead focus on learning how construct better systems which are inherently more stable. To that end, we need methods to instrument and properly quantify how laws effect the competency, fairness, virtue, and balance of representation in democratic systems. I found this thesis interesting regarding this approach though I have not had time to scrutinize all of the math involved: https://kilthub.cmu.edu/articles/thesis/Computational_Perspectives_on_Democracy/17041709 https://kilthub.cmu.edu/articles/thesis/Computational_Perspe...

elcritch 4y ago
Good points, and it sort of overlaps with themes in one of my favorite modern sci-fi novels “Freedom” by Daniel Suarez. In it a billionaire game developer creates an alternative “dark net” sorta DAO tailored to bring out the best in communities of people. It’s less mathematics based, but still based on algorithms setup to reward healthy communities. Sorta fascinating idea. The notion of a DAO designed by a genius game developer also highlights that much of the problem can’t or won’t be “solved” by mathematics. The DAO was supposedly successful because the game developer understood human communities and psyche. We just don’t have the statistical data or computational power yet to solve problems of that nature, IMHO. Though better mathematical tools would be great ways to tune our systems. Mainly mathematical tools miss out on the inconsistencies of human cognition. The best thing we can have is a well educated populous with a culture and belief system conducive to democracy. Also prosperity and abundance of natural resources help as well.
a_w 4y ago
Any thoughts on Sortition? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sortition https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sortition
- HybridCurve 4y ago
  It's been used fairly successfully for deliberative minipublics. I don't think it is the best method for replacing elected officials but it would be a good way to have direct representation if they participate at the same level as legislators. Being able to select adequately competent participants can be a challenge depending on your source pool, and some point there would need to be a fair process, resistant to manipulation or gaming, in order to cull less qualified individuals. There also exists problems with this method in highly polarized political environments, particular those in which exists two entirely separate information ecosystems such as the US.
  - a_w 4y ago
    Thanks for the reply! I have thought quite a bit about this over the past few of years, and I think it is probably the best method for replacing elected officials at least up to the senate level. "Being able to select adequately competent participants can be a challenge depending on your source pool, and some point there would need to be a fair process, resistant to manipulation or gaming, in order to cull less qualified individuals." I agree that it will initially be a challenge to find 'competent participants', but I think this can be solved by introducing/adding courses at the high-school level that the community/citizens believe are essential (I am thinking econ, history, the constitution, etc.) I also agree that fairness is another an important issue - care must be taken to ensure that whatever 'competence' criteria are used don't turn into another poll-tax. "There also exists problems with this method in highly polarized political environments, particular those in which exists two entirely separate information ecosystems such as the US." Another excellent point. But I think we all have family members and friends who hold views that are the complete opposite of our own, or we may view are extreme, but we also find other issues we agree on and find ways to work/live together. I think if a congressperson knows that they don't have to raise money or worry about a primary challenge, then I believe they will find ways to work with people from a different party, or colleagues who are independents. The separate information systems will still be there, but I don't believe their influence on legislators will be at the level it is now.

elcritch 4y ago

Good points, and it sort of overlaps with themes in one of my favorite modern sci-fi novels “Freedom” by Daniel Suarez. In it a billionaire game developer creates an alternative “dark net” sorta DAO tailored to bring out the best in communities of people. It’s less mathematics based, but still based on algorithms setup to reward healthy communities. Sorta fascinating idea. The notion of a DAO designed by a genius game developer also highlights that much of the problem can’t or won’t be “solved” by mathematics. The DAO was supposedly successful because the game developer understood human communities and psyche. We just don’t have the statistical data or computational power yet to solve problems of that nature, IMHO. Though better mathematical tools would be great ways to tune our systems. Mainly mathematical tools miss out on the inconsistencies of human cognition. The best thing we can have is a well educated populous with a culture and belief system conducive to democracy. Also prosperity and abundance of natural resources help as well.

a_w 4y ago

Any thoughts on Sortition? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sortition https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sortition

HybridCurve 4y ago
It's been used fairly successfully for deliberative minipublics. I don't think it is the best method for replacing elected officials but it would be a good way to have direct representation if they participate at the same level as legislators. Being able to select adequately competent participants can be a challenge depending on your source pool, and some point there would need to be a fair process, resistant to manipulation or gaming, in order to cull less qualified individuals. There also exists problems with this method in highly polarized political environments, particular those in which exists two entirely separate information ecosystems such as the US.
- a_w 4y ago
  Thanks for the reply! I have thought quite a bit about this over the past few of years, and I think it is probably the best method for replacing elected officials at least up to the senate level. "Being able to select adequately competent participants can be a challenge depending on your source pool, and some point there would need to be a fair process, resistant to manipulation or gaming, in order to cull less qualified individuals." I agree that it will initially be a challenge to find 'competent participants', but I think this can be solved by introducing/adding courses at the high-school level that the community/citizens believe are essential (I am thinking econ, history, the constitution, etc.) I also agree that fairness is another an important issue - care must be taken to ensure that whatever 'competence' criteria are used don't turn into another poll-tax. "There also exists problems with this method in highly polarized political environments, particular those in which exists two entirely separate information ecosystems such as the US." Another excellent point. But I think we all have family members and friends who hold views that are the complete opposite of our own, or we may view are extreme, but we also find other issues we agree on and find ways to work/live together. I think if a congressperson knows that they don't have to raise money or worry about a primary challenge, then I believe they will find ways to work with people from a different party, or colleagues who are independents. The separate information systems will still be there, but I don't believe their influence on legislators will be at the level it is now.