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Science is Political 2.0's avatar

That is a really well written article. We are trying but here in "Northern VA" it is like swimming upstream. I am going to write some letters today to elected representatives who sound exactly like Linda Steele. The machine just keeps rolling regardless of what has been stated and voted for. I am feeling very discouraged today. Thanks for the article.. :)

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Anarcasper's avatar

This is a powerful and important vision, and I really appreciate the clarity of your call to root out corruption and return agency to the people. That said, I’d like to offer a gentle critique from the lens of coordination systems. While flipping the power dynamic so that politicians are held accountable by the people sounds like justice, it still relies on a framework of control and coercion. The "shock collar" metaphor, the use of public scoring, and the emphasis on constant surveillance risk recreating the very dynamics of Power Over that we are trying to escape, just in reverse.

Instead of building a system that punishes representatives into alignment, what if we built one that invited them into shared responsibility? We could design participatory systems that center transparency through collaboration, not threat. Rather than scoring and sanctioning individuals, we could create shared dashboards and deliberative spaces that allow people and politicians to learn, act, and adapt together. Trustworthy systems don’t just expose; they cultivate a culture of mutual clarity, curiosity, and accountability. If we really want a new kind of politics, maybe the answer isn’t to flip who controls whom, but to dissolve control altogether in favor of true coordination.

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