[Winona Online Democracy]
Paul,
While I agree that, on occasion, an ideological, winner-take-all argument
can be a fun diversion; I have to say that as the person who receives the
requests to join and leave this list there is a direct correlation between
that type of discussion and people leaving the list. So I have to disagree
with your assessment.
Just for review, the purpose of this list is to . . . "empower, inform, and
engage the citizenry by creating an ongoing community-wide discussion of
local public issues. It seeks to reawaken a spirit of more active
participation in civic life and provide an environment in which learning and
knowledge building can take place. It seeks to be an agent for change in
our community by improving the quality of decision making and providing a
direct link between the public and community leaders."
I guarantee that goal is not going to be reached without "discussions that
tend toward problem solving and consensus building". While that may be
"boring" to some, it is actually quite exciting to others (myself included).
Steve Kranz
----- Original Message -----
From: "Paul Double" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Wednesday, November 29, 2000 4:02 PM
Subject: [Winona] Deliberative Discussion
> [Winona Online Democracy]
>
> Steve, if you want to kill online democracy forum this is a great way to
> end it-----
>
> "It is our hope that the discussions that take place on Winona Online
> Democracy will be ones that
> >tend toward problem solving and consensus building"
>
> Boring!
> If it happens it happens.
> If it doesn't we all learn.
> Democracy is not consensus
>
> Paul Double
> [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
>
> >From: "Steve Kranz" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> >Date: Wed, 29 Nov 2000 12:06:08 -0600
> >
> >Greetings Everyone,
> >
> >We've just passed three-months of Winona Online Democracy. Thanks to
> >everyone for contributing to a lively discussion of community issues!
> >
> >I thought this might be a good time to pass along some information I came
> >across regarding "deliberative discussion". It is our hope that the
> >discussions that take place on Winona Online Democracy will be ones that
> >tend toward problem solving and consensus building, rather than
ideological
> >debates that primarily seek to convince others of the correctness of an
> >individual's point of view.
> >
> >According to the Kettering Foundation . . . .
> >
> >"In deliberating, individuals come together and discuss issues that
affect
> >them all. They find shared values and decide on a likely course of
action.
> >Deliberation can be considered the functional speech of the community, or
> >the formation of the will of the public; the way that a community decides
> >what it wants. Deliberation is based on a recognition of shared values
> >between individuals, and a realization of conflicting values. If the
> >participants are unwilling to see things from another's point of view,
the
> >discussion will likely dissolve into unproductive conflict."
> >
> >I hope that as we discuss more challenging issues, we can keep an ethic
of
> >Deliberative Discussion and work to recognize the views of others while
> >working to develop specific solutions to issues that affect our
community.
> >
> >Thanks for your continued participation.
> >
> >-Steve Kranz, Co-Chair
> >Winona Online Democracy
>
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