The internet is the catalyst for true globalisation

People in western democracies seem to be becoming more and more disillusioned with their leaders and democratic governance, I refer you to a previous article on Jesaurai www.jesaurai.net ‘Can democracy be compulsory’ which said younger people’s attitudes to voting in a recent Australian federal election was indifferent. A lot of people simply don’t care to vote for their political leaders because they don’t see that they do anything for them.

Modern leaders in Europe, Australia and North America have actually encouraged this blaise attitude to democratic governance by selling national assets and thus putting the control collective assets built up over years into the hands of private organisations, and by lying to their citizens in order to go to war (very reminiscent of old feudal rulers who’s main pre-occupation seemed to be war).

Modern neo-conservatist thought actually encourages the individual to look after themselves, rather than support democratic governance, they are encouraged to provide for their own health care, housing, their children’s schooling and university, and the car is the preferred transport method. If however goods or services cannot be provided for profit, they will not be provided at all. And if one doesn’t have the money to purchase what one needs one doesn’t get it.

The problem with neo-conservatism is most people on earth can’t afford to provide the more complicated expensive things for themselves, such as medicines, hospitals, roads, and even clean water.

Philanthropy has become the modern way of doing grand non-profit projects.

Philanthropy, which is wonderful, accept it puts a lot of power and responsibility into to the hands of the very few. This can lead to the rest of us feeling alienated powerless in the important projects undertaken in our own world.

Having said this there seems to be a growing world wide movement back to collectivism and group action, groups such as getup which lobbies governments on behalf of a broad spectrum of people myspace which gives people the opportunity to exchange ideas and group together across borders, and MyOurNation which acts almost like a global democracy where members can vote on projects all around the globe. These sites and many others are filling the gap that modern democratic governments have vacated, that being the collective of individuals doing things they can all benefit from but can’t do on their own.

We may well be at the dawn of a true global revolution, where the internet gives us the power to not only exchange information and ideas, but act on them as well in a true democratic way.

David Campbell