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The Forum > General Discussion > What is a Guided Democracy?

What is a Guided Democracy?

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Opposition leader, Tony Abbott, was overheard suggesting that we could use a more "guided democracy" during a conversation with Nauru's president. It seems he was referring to a "disruptive" media.
Sounds a bit ominous. Does anyone have an opinion as to how a guided democracy might differ from an open one?
Posted by Poirot, Sunday, 8 August 2010 6:28:17 AM
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The term 'guided democracy' was one used by Dr Soekarno, the first president of Indonesia following the collapse of Dutch colonial rule in the then Dutch East Indies in early 1942, to describe the polity of Indonesia. It was a term all in vogue during the 1950s and 1960s.



We have one here in Australia already, I think, Poirot.




The OLO Article 'Election fiction reveals political reality', currently the top article on the 'Today's most popular' display, viewable frozen in time here: http://twitpic.com/2cl8eo , contains a perhaps unwitting, but nevertheless accurate, description of the features of politics in a guided democracy. It is also the second-most-discussed Article. Worth a look if you are prepared to look beneath the labels used by both author and many posters.

OLO viewers can reach this display at any time on this page, http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/ . You have to scroll down below the ads beneath the list of most recently posted articles to the Forum to find the display.

I wonder whether Tony Abbott used the term knowingly, or in ignorance?

My current General Discussion topic 'Stop the poll and surprise the parties', http://forum.onlineopinion.com.au/thread.asp?discussion=3840&page=0 , I like to think is about derailing 'guided democracy' in Australia, now that you (and Tony Abbott) have brought the term back to mind. I thank the both of you.

As to what entity may be guiding Australia's democracy remains a little unclear to me, but I suspect an American connection, via Switzerland, may be in some way instrumental in such guidance.

Of course, I know who could (and may well be duty bound to) guide Australian democracy in, by contrast, a very proper way. That person is the Governor-General.



Thank you for your vigilance, Poirot.
Posted by Forrest Gumpp, Sunday, 8 August 2010 8:54:14 AM
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Poirot, I'm not familiar with the term; 'guided democracy', but my immediate inclination is that we could indeed do with a more guided democracy in Australia.

The person charged with achieving this should be the Governor General. I've commented on this on Forrest's thread (see http://forum.onlineopinion.com.au/thread.asp?discussion=3840#94643 and my other posts there)

The basic premise is that the GG should keep the major parties on-track about policies that really matter, during election campaigns and in government, make sure that they give us a reasonable degree of detail rather than gross generalities, that promises or assertions are honoured and that enormously important policy areas such as population policy and sustainability are not ignored or glossed over!

I guess this has got little to do with Abbott's idea of a guided democracy with respect to Nauru. But they are my thoughts on the subject regardless.

Cheers
Posted by Ludwig, Sunday, 8 August 2010 9:25:43 AM
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Aah! Abbott can talk all he likes –but he’s a babe in the woods when it comes to guided democracy.

Here’s the recipe:
You make a policy in closed Cabinet, but you don’t announce it , lest you lose votes.
Then after the election has safely passed, you hand pick a committee, and drip feed them your decision.
After a respectable time has elapsed – you tell them they’ve reached consensus and call a media event.
You then announce what THEY'VE decided --dumfounded by their five minutes of fame, all the patsies can do is nod assent & smile sheepishly.

And here’s the leek:
“JULIA GILLARD: …We would use a selection that got a representative group, and Kerry, then you and others would report the working of the citizens' assembly. That would help inform community debate. It’s not gonna be deliberative…

JULIA GILLARD: Well - and they would, though, at least say this: that it's important to work through an end point - to an end point where people have the discussion, have the debate and we get a consensus about a carbon pollution reduction scheme. I will lead that debate ...

KERRY O'BRIEN: You're assuming that the consensus will come…
http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2010/s2972557.htm

Well, Kerry, I'm not going to talk about Cabinet conversations,
Well, Kerry, I'm not going to talk about my relationship with Kevin,
Well, Kerry, I'm not going to talk about that …
Well, Kerry, I'm not going to talk about that …
Well, Kerry, I'm not going to talk about that…
(whoops! sorry got caught in a loop there.)
Posted by Horus, Sunday, 8 August 2010 9:34:30 AM
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Ludwig, we'd want to change the criteria we use to select our Governor General, if we wanted them to do any thing useful.

About the only use I can see for the present one is that she can get some pastel coloured suits out for an airing, with out hanging them on a cloths line.
Posted by Hasbeen, Sunday, 8 August 2010 9:46:42 AM
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Forrest Gump:

>>> I wonder whether Tony Abbott used the term knowingly, or in ignorance? <<<

And that is the kazillion dollar question, because Abbott is capable of either. Which is why he scares me more than Gillard.

As for the question, I had never heard of the term "guided democracy" before, sounds like an oxymoron to me. And I have this sneaking suspicion we are already in one - guided that is, irrespective of whether Labor or Liberals "guide" us.
Posted by Severin, Sunday, 8 August 2010 11:44:30 AM
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