Trivia question: What is the most important decision you will be making at the ballot box at this November election? (Hint: it’s not the election of any candidate).
Answer: Whether or not to hold a Constitutional Convention or “ConCon”.
Every 10 years, voters have the opportunity to decide whether or not we can hold a ConCon which is where wholesale changes can be made to our state constitution.
Our last ConCon was 30 years ago and in 1978 some important changes were made, according to Dkosopedia including among others:
• Creation of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs
• Term limits for governor
• Requiring a balanced budget
And so in 2008, we once again have the chance to hold a ConCon.
So where’s the historic “Geek Component” opportunity?
I believe that we have before us the potential to put our heads together and create a web application that lends itself to democratic participation and decision-making. I believe this model can be applied to ConCon and if successful can subsequently be used for other public decision-making systems like the City Council and State Legislature.
Open source development paradigm meets public decision making
From what I’ve learned so far, my understanding is that ConCons have strong grassroots elements. They are a chance for the people to engage in an open conversation about Hawaii’s future. In 1978, they didn’t have the Internet. Today, we have broadband networks and powerful computers. Do we have sufficient technological resources to enable digital debates? I think so.
We have Internet-based political campaigning. What about Internet-based lawmaking?
Barack Obama has taken Internet-based campaigning and fundraising to a new level. He has permanently “torn the fabric of space” in regards to merging Internet with politics. I believe we can take the next logical step and use the Internet for public debate, decision-making, and perhaps even legislation. Imagine the kind of input and diversity of thought that would result if any citizen could participate in a serious debate on important issues from the comfort and convenience of their home. What kind of increased participation could we get from that?
A bold step has been taken
There’s only one way to find out and I’m proud to say that together with other leaders like Burt Lum, Ryan Ozawa, Former Congressman Ed Case, Jay Fidell, and Representative Della Au Bellati, we’ve launched HawaiiConCon.org. Today, it’s a combination of Ning social networking and pbwiki.com wiki infrastructures. Tomorrow, who knows? The users will drive the need.
E Komo Mai!
I’m cordially inviting all of you to come over to HawaiiConCon.org and participate. Get involved. There are some issues about Hawaii’s government you must hold dear or want to change. What are they? Tell us about it! We too are using Ning so there’s no signup process.
We need Geeks Like You to get involved!
So far the initial success has been great. But as the site grows in popularity, people will need both help and more features. And that’s where YOU come in. Hawaii’s tech community could and should be the ambassadors that herald in a new age of Digital Democracy. It can happen if you help us make it happen.
Be a part of the solution
This year, the voters will decide if they want to hold a ConCon. Right now there is only one site that is encouraging learning, discussions, and decisions regarding this most important issue and with your help and participation, HawaiiConCon.org can become the epicenter of a new paradigm of public political participation.
I had a great time presenting to a crowd of about 200 people on Friday, Sept 28 on a topic I’m really in love with known as “The Wisdom of Crowds” “The Wisdom of Crowds” Based on the Book by James Surowiecki
that basically says you can setup a method of getting input from people in such a way that the result is nearly always the right answer.
I’m a big fan of Paul Graham and had the pleasure to meet him personally when I spoke @ MIT about one of my inventions (PDF).
If you’re pondering starting up a tech company and are looking for money, I suggest you read his essay, “The Hacker’s Guide to Investors“.
In classic Graham style, he’s talking to you, the geek. Good stuff. Read it.
Paul covers these points:
1. The investors are what make a startup hub.
2. Angel investors are the most critical.
3. Angels don’t like publicity.
4. Most investors, especially VCs, are not like founders.
5. Most investors are momentum investors.
6. Most investors are looking for big hits.
7. VCs want to invest large amounts.
8. Valuations are fiction.
9. Investors look for founders like the current stars.
10. The contribution of investors tends to be underestimated.
11. VCs are afraid of looking bad.
12. Being turned down by investors doesn’t mean much.
13. Investors are emotional.
14. The negotiation never stops till the closing.
15. Investors like to co-invest.
16. Investors collude.
17. Large-scale investors care about their portfolio, not any individual company.
18. Investors have different risk profiles from founders.
19. Investors vary greatly.
20. Investors don’t realize how much it costs to raise money from them.
21. Investors don’t like to say no.
22. You need investors.
23. Investors like it when you don’t need them.
His premise is that today’s terrorism is an extremist response to globalization, primarily because globalization’s march exposes cultures to new values and the most sensitive of those values is how women are treated. Cultures that have embraced globalization typically have women that are educated and participating in leadership roles in government and business. Take a quick look at the countries in today’s disconnected (i.e. not participating in globalization, or as Barnett says, “Gap” nations) and women’s roles are significantly limited to say the least.
So, to break it all down in the most simplest terms, globalization threatens the control that Gap nations have over their women. And as any man knows, if you really want to piss someone off, start messing with their women.
So what’s the long-term solution to terrorism? Let globalization permeate Gap nations, connecting them to the “Core” of developed (e.g. US, Europe) or “New Core” developing (e.g. India, China, Russia) nations. We beat the Soviets without essentially firing a shot because globalization took over. Barnett proposes using the same weapon (globalization) in a different way.
I like it.
So how can VC’s join the GWOT? Easy: provide investment capital to New Core nations and in some controlled cases, Gap nations. The more we invest in the Gap, the more globalized they become, and the sooner they get folded into the Core, and the sooner this war ends.
I appreciate Tom giving me a hat-tip on a link I gave to him about Kiva a web 2.0 app that lets anyone assist in microfinancing in primarily Gap nations. For example, Kiva lets you give $25 to help a woman in Azerbaijan take her beauty shop to the next level. And if she succeeds, you get your money paid back (hopefully future versions can pay back a little interest).
I see apps like Kiva allowing the masses to help get Gap businesses up and running. Get the Gap into business and you naturally get them to connect to the Core. The faster we do this, the faster globalization does its magic. A subsquent post tells me that Tom gets it.
I just read the TechCrunch post on BrightCove’s launch and it looks like a pretty appealing avenue for those somewhat serious about monetizing their video content. Seems to me they just leapfrogged what YouTube+GoogleVideo is supposed become. They don’t have their content base anywhere near Goog’s but do have a tighter, more defined financial model.
If Google takes too long to get their act together, BrightCove could pull ahead. Watch this one closely for sure.
