The Citizenism Project
Journey to Reclaim the Role of the Citizen in the Political Ecosystem
Democracy of Opportunity
WWJMD: What Would James Madison Do?
Questions for this pillar:
What are the vices of the political system?
What are effective ways to enable public opinion?
Programs and Initiatives:
Symptoms and Diseases (Vices) of the US Political System
James Madison and Public Opinion
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The Citizen Brief
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The Case Presentation
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The Citizen Commission
Reimagine the Constitution
The WWJMD: What Would James Madison Do? pillar is committed to a strong, healthy political system serving free and enlightened citizens through reclaiming the voice of the citizen within the political ecosystem. The project includes frameworks for citizen engagement, crowdsourcing and forums for discussion.
“instability, injustice and confusion introduced into the public councils, have in truth been the mortal diseases under which popular governments have everywhere perished”
James Madison, Federalist 10
Background:
WWJMD: What Would James Madison Do? is inspired by the political thinking that is the basis for the “DNA” of our body politic, the US Constitution, and the person who played a central role in the conception and birthing of the United States, James Madison, the “father of the Constitution”. Grounded in the farsighted vision of the founders, the project is informed by the experience of the past 230 years, by a modern understanding of human nature, and enabled by the assets of modern social life including digital technology and social media.
Strategy:
Building on James Madison’s process in laying the groundwork, navigating and providing the initial blueprint for the US constitution, and the skill to have it agreed to and implemented, we offer a blueprint for Version 6.0. A version that is true to the vision articulated in the Declaration of Independence, modern understanding of human nature, the challenges confronted by prior versions and the evolving digital age.
Delving into Madison’s view of public opinion serves as a backdrop for an exploration of the contemporary relevance of his views about the importance of public opinion for democracy
Symptoms and Diseases (Vices) of the US Political System
The political process, defined by the constitution, has been corrupted to the point that it is an existential threat to the US. Culture wars, congressional paralysis if not obstructionism, a polarized electorate, global challenges, the surveillance state, growing inequality, money’s impact on the political election have all contributed to growing distrust of the federal government.
"So strong is this propensity of mankind to fall into mutual animosities, that where no substantial occasion presents itself, the most frivolous and fanciful distinctions have been sufficient to kindle their unfriendly passions and excite their most violent conflicts."
James Madison Federalist 10
James Madison and Public Opinion
Crowdsourcing, Collaboration and Deliberation
The Citizenism Project utilizes Citizen Briefs, Case Presentations and Citizen Commission as dynamic, interactive, collaborative processes that engage our fellow citizens to address the cultural, social, political challenges confronting us as individuals, members of our community and citizens of the nation and the world. It provides a structure for citizens to collaborate, identify, analyze, develop, implement and monitor a solution based “treatment plan” for our challenges.
"public opinion sets bounds to every government, and is the real sovereign in every free one."
James Madison “Public Opinion” The National Gazette, December 19th, 1791
The Citizen Brief
A citizen-focused document, the Citizen Brief presents relevant social and political information to support social and political engagement. A complete Citizen Brief provides a vision for an issue, reframes the problem, provides data, and discusses the various issues and proposals available.
The Citizen Commission
The Citizen Commission offers a dynamic, interactive, collaborative process that engages our fellow citizens to address the cultural, social, political challenges confronting us as individuals, members of our community and citizens of the nation and the world. It provides a structure for citizens to collaborate, identify, analyze, develop, implement and monitor a solution-based “treatment plan” for our challenges.
Reimagine the Constitution
Building upon the events of the 1787 constitutional convention the initiative uses the proceeding to focus on the current implications of the constitution. It will be structured to allow the presentation of topics to be presented in the time frame that they were discussed in Philadelphia in 1787 and introduce relevant commentary and historical events that amplify our understanding of the topic.
