Class was interesting for the most part last week, but I still have no idea what the hell a "flashmob" is supposed to accomplish and second life is definitely creepy. I understand that with using second life we could cut down on travel costs, traffic, pollution emissions, etc. associated with attending meetings/conferences/classes, but I still feel that most issues couldn't be resolved as effectively in this manner. I might be feeling my age, but I still feel human-human interaction (not avatar-avatar) is the best medium for deliberation and consensus building.
I also agree that public deliberation and collaboration are the best tools out there to solve wicked problems. Deliberation allows to put complex issues into context, broadens our self-interest, increases the willingness for people to get involved, and helps us develop a better handle on a number of issues. Like the readings stated, it just increases our knowledge as a whole and develops social capital.
However, I feel as if public deliberation works for certain problems and not others. As for smart growth and urban development public deliberation seems to be a great fit. I feel as if development decisions should be made by the entire community and not just the officeholders and developers. I wish more communities would allow the public to become more involved in these decisions, because if they had been we wouldn't be building another Wal-Mart in Blacksburg. I feel as if certain communities, like Blacksburg, are a little too set in their ways regarding development decisions. Yeah they may open up hearings to the public, but I feel as if the citizens of Blacksburg don't have anyone backing them up. The officials just listen to what the two or three people that show up to these meetings have to say, and then do what the town government wanted anyway.
Also public deliberation doesn't really apply to solving global warming either. I feel that the process is just too slow to address the issue before its too late. I have stated earlier that a MASSIVE shift in public policy regarding energy use and acceptance of alternative energy sources will require much more governmental doing. Public deliberation could be used more for general raising of awareness, but as for solving the issue entirely...I just don't see it.
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