Technology Improves Democracy
Democracy’s legitimacy comes from the consent of the people. Consent can be given by voting with a ballot, feet, wallet, or some combination of those. The key is that people have opted in and given manifest, conscious consent.
Conversely, a “democracy” may not retain consent of the governed. If you could somehow carry out a representative poll of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, those who aren’t brainwashed may want to leave. Calling oneself a democracy doesn’t make you one.
People currently use polling as a rough measure of the popularity of a policy between election cycles, but you could extend this to generate real-time polls on most issues. Liquid Democracy attempts to do this and give governments and citizens tighter feedback loops.
“The will of the people” and “Let the market decide.” These are similar concepts with different advocates.
Let the market decide: “I’m pitching them something in their individual self interest, not some kind of moral precept. My conscience is clear.”
The will of the people: “I’m advocating a moral precept, not something in their individual self interest. My conscience is clear.”
The first believes they are building a genuinely beneficial product, not hawking some flim-flam religion. The second believes they are building a genuinely important movement, not hawking some flim-flam company.
Conflict of interest: less credible if you have a stake.
Put your money where your mouth is: only credible if you have a stake.
*Note: This is a bonus section from The Anthology of Balaji, which was edited out of the final published version. Enjoy this section and join the email list for updates, new material, and upcoming products.
