last edited 2009/06/05 00:06 (
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I must admit Facebook and the alike isn't my thing; I had my share of building a social or rather "spiritual" community myself back then with SpiritWeb.org in late 1990's - you get everything: eloquent writers waiting to be recognized and turning out indeed great book authors, but also attention seeking troubled individuals called
trolls. I experienced the collective as an apathic and passive being, fast in writing an email or posting ideas, but when action was required, you could see how little of the said was really meant - overall a very disappointing experience for me, in many regards.
But . . . I see also in social networks like Facebook or Twitter a new grassroot tool to mobilize and build up momentum. The most crucial aspect of those tools are, whether it affects the real world or just remains "hot air" (talk without action).
In the early days of the internet the academics dominated the forums, but then AOL users flooded the internet, and it became clear to most that the internet will become the next "telephone", a commodity whose impact still is in the development for the destiny of humankind.
My hope is, that it aids the overall consciousness and awareness of the humankind as whole - allow people to realize their true oneness of humankind, and the given responsibility within creation on this planet. I know this sounds very idealistic, but I really mean it.
As I wrote in the brain storming of "The World Government Swiss-Made", I see now the internet brings that very referendum tool in a very eloquent way - it allows people to initiate their own momentum without waiting for local governments implementing grassroot political tools. The tools are here already - outside of the parliamentary system - alike in the late 1960's when the hippies and political left groups asked for an Ausserparlamentarische Opposition (APO) - or in plain english Extraparliamentary Opposition - the social networks are becoming exactly this - and it arrived without a political turn over, it arrived based on a technology, whose inherent structure builds the fundament for a collective consciousness to be developed: the internet, by its very internal setup, allows any connected party to connect any party, point to point or peer to peer; it implements a flat hierachy - you may even argue a complete absence of hierachy. And this goes way beyond the democracy as such, it reaches to the old ways to negotiate decisions: consensus reaching discussions, where arguments weight more than roles and its assumed power which may come with - a radical participation of the citizens like using a talking stick and summon around a fire to discuss the matter of the tribe - archetypical decision making procedures.
June 4, 2009 - also the 20th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre (Tiananmen = Heavenly Peace), and China censors the various news sites and Twitter as well - the tools for a grassroot . . . . revolution - they are really scared.
Obama used the net with his young motivated staff to create a momentum - and raised more money than ever before by receiving many but small donations - of course also big corporate money came in big time as well.
Where does it lead to?
In the best case it does enhance the participatory non-hierachical political involvement of wider range of citizens - and achieve more than many revolutionary ideas of the later 1960's and early 1970's were dreamed of . . . it isn't just a technological revolution taking place, it swaps and diffuses into a much wider range of our lifes.
2010: India
2009: France: Two Tours
2008: Tour de Romandie
2008: Zug - Bern - Zug
2008: Strasbourg
2008: Europe
2007: France
2005: France & Italy
2004: USA: Denver - Sedona
2004: Lenzburg - Marseille
2004: La Gomera
2003: Sardinien
2003: La Gomera
2002: Korsika
2002: Bordeaux - Hendaye
