As the internet continues to make transparency and collaboration cheaper and easier, governments around the world face increasing pressure to become more open and more participatory. … more
Organisational obesity and the role of local government
Many government departments suffer from organisational obesity. Never mind the weight of young children, take a look at the amount of dead weight in government. Out-dated hierarchical systems designed to protect egos over-emphasise fear and worship of ministerial wants and desires and are fleeing from the role as expert adviser to become pandering ‘yes’ men and women. Struggling with organisational dysfunction government systems revert to bland, neutral positions on most issues. Government documents edited via … more
A better future: Options for reform
Reform principles In Australia, the State level of government is particularly responsive to differences in the circumstances and preferences of, say, North Queensland versus Tasmanian families. On the other hand, the Federal Government’s role is to ensure that both are treated equitably in the distribution of income and have access to services of a minimum national standard. Reform principles This chapter canvasses some guiding principles for consideration of reform to the way in which the … more
Building sustainable democracies
Democracy as the majority of us experience it is an empty ritual. We are allocated a certain number of votes and a lifetime to spend them in. We could be forgiven for craving something more than the opportunity to put a cross on a ballot paper and the pretence that this is meaningful or active citizenship. The term ‘democracy’ is misleading. We do not have democracy, we have representative government; we have an elective aristocracy … more
Voters seeking ‘real’ Australian idol
The newspaper headline screams: ‘ANGRY CLASHES IN TV DEBATE ON ELECTIONS’. This headline isn’t talking about Sunday’s televised debate between John Howard and Mark Latham. It comes from 1958, and describes the first ever television election debate between Robert Menzies, HV Evatt and senior politicians. Another newspaper summed it up as: ‘LEADERS ‘LIVELY’ IN NATION’S FIRST TV POLL DUEL’. Forty-six years later, the 2004 version could hardly be described as ‘angry’ (despite the Channel Nine … more
The political guide to the internet
It is crucial that all Australians can access political news, information and a range of views. But a content analysis of Australian newspapers found that some of the most popular newspapers devote less than ten per cent of their space to political news. On commercial TV, the situation is even worse. Executives fear that any more than a few minutes of political coverage in each nightly news bulletin will turn off those viewers who just … more
Sharing decision-making
If our democracy is to survive, it requires deliberation. Democracy requires deliberation for three reasons. 1. To enable citizens to discuss public issues and form opinions; 2. To give democratic leaders much better insight into public issues than elections are able to do; 3. To enable people to justify their views so we can sort out the better from the worse. Deliberative democracy is not new. Citizen deliberation was the hallmark of Ancient Greece, and … more
Improving constitutional awareness
In his Australia Day address last month the Governor-General, Major General Michael Jeffery, lamented the poor level of knowledge of the Australian Constitution among the community, and particularly among younger Australians. In doing so he hit on one of the rare issues on which monarchists and republicans actually agree. The GG’s comments came in the wake of polling suggesting a fall in support for an Australian republic, and an increase in ‘uncommitted’ voters on this … more