Category Archives: Democracy

Political debate: how can we encourage playing by the rules?

Posted on June 3, 2013 by

We knew things were pretty dire, but a new poll has put some numbers onto our fears. The “Citizen’s Agenda” survey from the University of Melbourne has found that voters are “pretty appalled” at the standard of political debate, with 57% of … Continue reading →

Posted in Argumentation, Deliberation, Democracy, Political Debate, YourView | 2 Comments

“Direct Democracy” Exhibition and Forum

Posted on May 30, 2013 by

Yesterday The Age had a review of the Direct Democracy exhibition at the Monash University Museum of Art.  Robert Nelson wrote: “Our elections are contrived over highly controlled choices, where ‘‘the major political parties battle for the middle ground swing … Continue reading →

Posted in Deliberative democracy, Democracy, YourView | 1 Comment

What are issue clarifiers, and why do we need them?

Posted on May 3, 2013 by

This is an excerpt from a chapter to appear in a volume edited by Margaret Simons on “new media entrepreneurs”.  What is the bare minimum a citizen needs to know in order to have a reasonable, informed opinion on a … Continue reading →

Posted in Democracy, Issue clarifier, YourView | Leave a comment

Are Australian voters mis-aligned? How badly?

Posted on March 5, 2013 by

A recent survey in the US presented voters with three different plans with regard to the looming “sequestration“, without telling them which political party was behind each plan.  47% of Republican voters preferred a plan called The Balancing Act.   This … Continue reading →

Posted in Alignment, Democracy, Polling | Leave a comment

Virtual democracy inevitable?

Posted on June 7, 2012 by

A key member of Australia’s Inner Commentariat, Rob Burgess, recently wrote a column Should Australia try Democracy.  To which one Frank Aquino responded: Back in the day, it was the obvious approach to take give that we couldn’t all fit … Continue reading →

Posted in Deliberative democracy, Democracy, Polling, Voting, YourView | 3 Comments

How we can save democracy – a response to letters to The Age, 12-13 May 2012

Posted on May 13, 2012 by

On 11 May, I had an opinion piece published in The Age under the title ‘How we can save democracy’. On 12 May, in the Saturday paper, there were four letters in response. They took issue with different things the … Continue reading →

Posted in Deliberative democracy, Democracy, Media, Polling, YourView | Leave a comment

Looking for YourView

Posted on May 4, 2012 by

A recent comment on a column by Michelle Grattan in The Age: You have to love these pontificating journalists standing atop the mountain espousing their views in their papal robes as if what they say is coming straight out of … Continue reading →

Posted in Democracy, Media | Leave a comment

Changing our minds about polls

Posted on April 26, 2012 by

Essay co-authored with Paul Monk.  Cross-posted on the YourView blog.  Over half of Australians are dismissive about global warming.  That’s the apparent message from a survey on the ABC website, part of its “I can change your mind about climate” programming … Continue reading →

Posted in Deliberative democracy, Democracy, Polling, YourView | Leave a comment

We struck a chord…

Posted on March 16, 2012 by

Since YourView was featured in The Zone, we’ve been inundated by a minor flood of expressions of support and offers of assistance. The common thread is the view that Australian democracy is, if not wholly broken, at least seriously ill; … Continue reading →

Posted in Democracy, Media, YourView | 1 Comment

Al Gore: Occupy Democracy

Posted on March 14, 2012 by

From Common Dreams: Former vice president Al Gore and Napster co-founder and Web entrepreneur Sean Parker on led a discussion Monday evening at the South By Southwest conference (SXSW) in Austin, Texas. An audience of thousands attended the Austin Convention … Continue reading →

Posted in Democracy, YourView | 1 Comment