There seems to be an intentional attempt on this blog to distort EMR’s views of governance and the achievement of Fundamental Transformation in human settlement pattern, governance structure and the global economic structure.
Darrell – Chesapeake dismisses EMR as just another socialist.
Larry Gross somewhere got the idea that it will require a philosopher king to manage society. He has not bothered to read THE ESTATES MATRIX.
Nova Middle Man recently said:
“EMR and You (Jim Bacon) seem to have similar goals but totally different ways of getting there. EMR’s plans only work with massive government regulation. Am I missing something?”
Yes!
“EMR probably would want 100% control in the typical liberal elite I know best mentality. In reality what would this look like.”
Where does this foolishness come from?
Not from anything we have written. Not from any lecture we have delivered. The primary source of this foolishness appears to stem from readers not understanding the Fundamental Transformation means FUNDAMENTAL TRANSFORMATION.
Since inquiry is part of a chapter we will be editing soon and we have not specifically addressed this issue before in this forum we will try to summarize:
Management at the Cluster scale is critically important since the Cluster is largest organic component with realistic potential to have effective direct democracy. This observation is base on years of Community management experience and on the study of group dynamics as well as the physical constraints of meeting space that is available at times and in locations when all the citizens of a Cluster can assemble.
So that means at least 2-million “leaders” and if there is any delegation of responsibility about 10-million.
The New Urban Region is the smallest Organic Component of human settlement that can achieve sustainability (and may also be the largest but that is another issue). To lead New Urban Regions, citizens need thousands of “leaders.” There are also Subregions and Urban Support Regions so let us say there is a need another 250,000 to manage at the Regional scale.
Above the New Urban Region – MegaRegions, nation-states, trading-blocks, continental and global scales there are many who would like the have roles. These are the one now hears about as “leaders” but they should have worked up through to ranks and they should be among those already tabulated.
Of course there are more than just Agencies in need of leadership. Many Enterprises and Institutions will be managed by those who also participate in the governance structure. The difference between now and a sustainable future is that in 24-7 Sunlight, everyone will know of the multiple roles and the conflicts can be eliminated.
At the other end of the spectrum of Organic Components is the Unit occupied by the Household. It is clear that to be a functional Household there must be at least one informed “leader.” If part of Household activity is to raise children there need to be at least two. So there is another 130-million more or less leaders.
The Dooryard, Neighborhood, Village scales components need leaders too but almost all will also be among those already identified.
So far we are up to 140,250,000 leaders. In a true democracy everyone has a vote so even those who are not in a leadership position at any given time role have a say.
So where is the central committee, the philosopher king or the liberal elite? Pure fantasy on the part of those who do not want to understand Fundamental Transformation.
Will such a system work? So far the field tests say yes – if citizens understand their role and take responsibility for their actions.
There need be no central committee and no philosopher king. No liberal elite, no pseud-conservative Belief Tank, no Tri-lateral commission, no messiah, no caliph, no dictator, no Darth Vader. Just citizens making informed decision in the market and in the voting booth.
As we suggest in posts over the last three months that focused on achieving a sustainable trajectory for civilization, creating an AntiParty and the upcoming change of administration – for example “Thanksgiving Perspective”:
The problem citizens face is massive over expectation that any one person or the team any one person assembles can “solve the problem.”
Larry Gross again:
“But EMR has failed repeatedly and miserably IMHO to lay out a clear and articulate path for citizens to understand what a Balanced Community is (and is not) – and what changes they should support via elections and referendum and current development proposals (like Tysons) to move in that direction.”
No, Larry, you have failed “repeatedly and miserably” to bother to read what EMR has written on these topics. For some reason you expect that every time a question occurs (or reoccurs) to you, that EMR has the obligation to drop everything and try to again answer it. That is especially a problem when you appear to only listen / read / understand what supports you preconceived notions which lack a comprehensive Conceptual Framework or a Vocabulary to articulate that framework.
That is why a sustainable trajectory requires hundreds of millions of citizens who are ‘responsible’ and informed so democracy and the market can work.
So far Jim Bacon is the only one who has grasp just how profound “Fundamental Transformation” – in settlement patterns, governance structure and economic systems – must be to obtain a sustainable trajectory.
The central tragedy is that the market and the vast majority of citizens indicated that they WANT that change but are thwarted by those who now benefit from special privileges under the existing system.
That is exactly what Niccolo M. said thwarted change…
EMR