Comments on: Vote on City Issues Online – Soon!

By: Jim

Jim — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 16:20:34 +0000

Thanks to all of you for typing what I wanted to say about this…I too look forward to this new avenue for appropriate participation.

By: Scott

Scott — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 15:30:04 +0000

Amen to that, Kim. At least in my experience, the greatest value of such tools is that they expand opportunities for engagement. Oftentimes, the primary complaint of citizens as it relates to local affairs is either that they were unaware something was being considered or that they were not afforded sufficient opportunity to provide their input. This proposal has good potential to address both in a positive way.

Make participants identify themselves, just as they would in a public meeting, and it’s a winner.

By: Kim->CommunityRadar.com

Kim->CommunityRadar.com — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 15:17:49 +0000

A very interesting prospect and I’ll follow it closely. Thank you for sharing this initiative – very progressive and Decatur should be proud!

@Scott: Regarding online forums being dominated by advocacy voices, I agree that is natural and seems to be universally a limitation. I hope that the planned site does require real identification of posters, though, as speculated above. I believe this will help enormously.

Online posting by anonymous users removes the normal pressure of civility enforced in the “real” world. It is the same dynamic that leads to road rage – we feel separated from “the other” and therefore our egos and more primal urges run amok. Technology evolves fast, we evolve more slowly – kudos to Decatur’s leadership for trying to help us catch-up!

By: David

David — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 13:00:07 +0000

When has politics not been dominated by activist voices. Hence the silent majority. Politicians have always counted on the fact that most people won’t get up off the couch for anything short of free beer. Now they don’t have to get off the couch to have a say in things. Whether anybody at city hall believes the folks is another matter. I always know what’s good for me and for you too.

By: Scott

Scott — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 21:14:07 +0000

I’ll be watching this closely. I do public process work all over the country and have yet to find any type of online community forum / discussion board that presented an accurate reflection of the community at large.

They are invariably dominated by activist voices. Generally happy people have opinions, but they’re far less likely to take any extra steps to voice them. As we’ve discovered through subsequent polling or referendums, issues discussed online often seem far less popular than they actually are.

I haven’t utilized Peak Democracy and am curious how the test will pan out.