Фев 13, 17 / Pis 16, 01 17:31 UTC
[POLL] Pantisocracy: A foundation for the Asgardian Constitution! ¶
NOTE: Please read at least part of this before voting in the poll!
Pantisocracy could be described as a system of government where there is no formal government structure in place, and where people are organized only insofar as people organize themselves. It could be described as a happy medium between the traditionalist democratic republic advocated by some, and the Anarchistic Free Market Socialist society advocated by others.
It was adopted by great thinkers such as Sir Francis Bacon, and it most certainly can work for Asgardia.
I believe that Pantisocracy is an acceptable foundation for the constitution because it assumes, as a fundamental position, that all beings are equal. The adage "Complete Power Corrupts a Person Completely" is also very true, and living the luxurious lifestyle of a member of government corrupts even the most moral person.
That's why I suggest that the "government" roles have the following properties.
- The government can be easily dissolved.
- The government is always in the view of the people and participating with the people on a regular basis (See the "Assembly" set-up below).
- There is no particular financial reward for being in the government; people participate in the government only out of a sense of duty to Asgardia. Whether or not the government receives a salary will be a resolution for the Assembly.
Asgardia will use a process called "Sortition", which was once used in ancient Greece, to determine a random chairperson among a list of declared candidates. It makes use of the "Assembly" function, in which people physically gather in one place and everyone gets one vote. This assembly will consist of anyone who chooses to attend. The chairperson is then responsible for choosing the topic of discussion within 15 minutes of being selected. The Assembly would then discuss and decide on the topic, formally called the "resolution", through direct democracy principles and through debate. The Assembly room would have limited seating reserved for individuals of particular importance, but all Asgardians would be able to vote using their mobile devices as an alternative. No "political parties" or organizations will be established, other than for two opposing delegates / opinions to arise out of the collective conversation.
The chairperson will lead the Asgardian National Assembly, which will essentially be the government caucus. The chairperson would be responsible for moderating the meeting and to ensure that the conversation stays on track. The chairperson's role would be "annulled" at the conclusion of the Assembly, and another chairperson would be chosen during the next assembly.
The assembly would take place Monday to Friday, at the same time and the same location, and anyone can attend.
There would also be a yearly election to determine the Ministers, Judges and Head of Country / Leader / President / Prime Minister among a list of proposed candidates. If the candidate list is excessive, eight candidates will be randomly selected from the pool. All government members chosen during the yearly elections MUST be present during the Weekly Assembly and will be given only one warning before being removed. A bi-election Assembly will be held to replace Ministers who derelict in their duties, who have been identified in a resolution as "corrupt", and / or Ministers who do not attend the Weekly Assemblies.
Just to clarify, the "head of state" would be a figurehead position. He or she is an organizational nexus point rather than an individual with real power over anyone else.
Regardless of the government members' opinions of the decisions made during the Weekly Assemblies, elected government will be given the responsibility of carrying out the resolution on the legislative and judicial levels.
The process for governance during a "pre-government" scenario like this (or a post-crisis scenario) would be as follows. We would organize ourselves into the ministries that are already established--anyone who wants to join that ministry may join it. We would then immediately commence an Assembly. People would verbally declare their candidacy to the chairperson, and then sign a slip of paper to be placed in a cube. They could also use their mobile devices. When the chairperson is decided, that person would conduct the Assembly for the elections. There would be ELEVEN (11) MINISTER POSITIONS AVAILABLE: one for each of the ministries. There would also be ELEVEN (11) JUDICIAL POSITIONS AVAILABLE, with each judge being informally tied to a Minister and Ministry.
Candidates for the minister positions would then be solicited. The candidates are then voted on during an election assembly. It would be well-organized and may also include opportunities for specific candidates to challenge each other to debates.
Once the election is finished and the Ministers are selected, they would be sworn in and would have an opportunity to meet with the Head of State and other elected officials.
The voting process itself would be this. People may vote "Yes", "No", or "No Confidence" to each candidate. There would be multiple different ways to vote in order to respect accessibility concerns. Each Assembly Election would be organized in advance, with the most populous Ministry going last and the least populous Ministry going first.