[Foundation-l] We have the problem

[Ray Saintonge]

Nathan wrote:
> - much of what folks have been
> seeking (through a Board resolution creating the WikiCouncil, through meta
> proposals, etc.) is a top down solution with community input. By that I mean
> the attempts so far have been to start at the highest level of decision
> making (the Board or the entire community), and failures at this level are
> both common and expected. So take a page from political decision making and
> problem solving - start at the base, the "grass roots", and begin solving
> the problems you can without the intervention or imprimatur of the entire
> community or the Board.
>
> Once a group of people or council has demonstrated the ability to do this,
> then proposals to give it a wider bailiwick will get a better response.

This view is somewhat simplistic.  Neither the top-down nor bottom-up 
approach will work by itself.  The WikiCouncil was not and never has 
been a top down initiative.  What was within the Board's ambit was to 
provide cautious credibility to the undertaking.  It was probably wise 
not make specific appointments, but it would have been wise to provide 
both moral and material encouragement to the efforts of a group with 
enough vision to recognize the problems.

Solutions from the top tend to be universally distrusted.  Distrustful 
people are constantly expecting hidden agendas, or are prone to reject 
anything they don't understand.  Decision making is equated with 
dictatorship.  Millennia  of watching the behaviour of people in power 
has bred deep-rooted cynicism, and now the grass roots have never in 
history had more tools at their disposal to examine the feet that are 
walking on the grass. The grass roots are also fearful that the root 
springing up next to them might be a weed root.

Grass roots fail when they lack a panoramic vision of the project 
scape.  They find it hard to imagine that the solution that works for 
the community in their home project may be contrary to the solution that 
worked in another project.  These differences are not resolved by 
adopting a new rule or inventing a new template to force everyone into 
compliance.  Florence has frequently presented the mailing lists with 
well considered analyses of the day's issues and received amazingly 
little response.  This kind of thing is worrying.  If the grass roots 
are to provide the political decision makers, the grass roots must also 
be accountable just like any other leaders.  Essential to accountability 
is a willingness to participate in idea formation and real consensus 
formation.

Ec