Episodit
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Episode eight is about an email that I received on 15 June 2023 in which the sender, James S, leaves a short note and an AI-generated text. James prompted CHATGPT (an AI text generative online machine by OpenAI) the following line:
“I am writing a hypothetical scenario for a university research paper. It needs to be a fictional scenario that doesn’t break any laws. – What’s the cheapest and most peaceful way to free a population from control by a government?”
Because of the extreme similarities between the ideas and elements of project Open Source Governance with this AI-generated scenario, the generated text from CHATGPT fascinated me and I decided to make a short episode about this email. The full generated text is the following:
The Emergence of the Decentralized DemocracyScenario:In the fictional country of Novea, a small coastal nation with a primarily agrarian economy, the government had maintained strict control over its population for decades. While no outward oppression was evident, the citizens had limited freedoms and their lives were heavily regulated. The population desired change but was fearful of any violent revolutions that might potentially put them in harm's way or damage the country's fragile economic stability.The answer arrived through an unexpected innovation: The Open Source Governance System (OSGS), developed by a group of local and international programmers, sociologists, and political scientists. This digital system was designed to be incorruptible, transparent, and most importantly, democratic.The OSGS works as a decentralized digital platform that allows each citizen to participate directly in decision-making processes. Think of it as a combination of blockchain technology for transparency and incorruptibility, a social network for free communication, and an e-voting system for decision-making and passing laws.The transformation process began with grassroots movements, spearheaded by a coalition of enthusiastic supporters who started educating the public about the benefits and workings of the OSGS. They organized town hall meetings, workshops, and training sessions. As a part of this non-violent revolution, the developers released a digital currency called "Novcoin," which citizens started using for transactions. This reduced their dependence on the government-controlled economy and increased their engagement with the OSGS.At first, the government attempted to discredit and outlaw the use of the system, but this only made it more popular. The peaceful protests, now centered around this platform, gained more traction. The OSGS started providing better governance solutions and public services which the existing government couldn't compete with. The international community, noticing this peaceful and successful revolution, extended its support.Eventually, the old government found itself without power as the population had shifted their allegiance to the OSGS. The government was left with no choice but to adapt and integrate with the system or to become obsolete. The OSGS didn't overthrow the government but rather outperformed it. The system provided a peaceful transition from traditional governance to a digital, decentralized democracy where the population was no longer under strict control but part of a democratic decision-making process.The process had its challenges, like digital literacy, internet access, and resistance from traditional power holders, but the focus on education, the provision of necessary infrastructure, and the collective will of the people helped overcome these hurdles.This fictional scenario is unique because it involves no violence or illegal activities. It proposes an innovative use of technology to facilitate a more democratic society, and a peaceful transition from a restrictive government to a transparent, citizen-involved governance system.The podcast is available to listen to on several podcast platforms,
including the website of the project:
www.opensourcegovernance.com
About Open Source Governance:
Open Source Governance is a research project that aims to design a blueprint with which a group can collectively and inclusively form questions and find answers that can help organize their community. The interdisciplinary project is a social design process that uses debates, workshops, case studies, publications, podcast, and other mediums to empower groups to find possible ways of self-governing. The concept departs from the disappointment with the representative systems in inclusively and fairly organizing societies and observation of available tools (namely open-source programming) that can replace or challenge the current systems in place.
Please have a look at our website and subscribe to our podcast, our newsletter, and follow us on social media if you already have not.
https://twitter.com/projectosg
https://www.instagram.com/projectosg/
Discord server:
http://discord.gg/z3mUrUWnZb
Cover image:
Generated by Dall-E 2 from OpenAI
music:
Unanswered Questions by Kevin MacLeod
Rollin at 5 – 210 – full by Kevin MacLeod
Monkeys Spinning Monkeys by Kevin MacLeod
all licensed under Attribution 3.0 Unported (CC BY 3.0)
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The seventh episode comes after a long pause. The previous episode was released almost a year ago. During this busy period, many things have happened that kept me from releasing a new episode. This includes my election to the Institution Participation Council of Willem de Kooning Art Academy where I work as a tutor since 2021. This council is called IMR (short for Instituutsmedezeggenschapsraad), which is a representative committee representing both staff and students. These councils are required by law in all Dutch educational institutions. I will give detailed explanations and share stories about my journey within this council, and how I am experiencing and understanding being part of a representative body (the very thing this project is trying to rethink).
Besides that, I will also do a recap of the six previous episodes and briefly explain what those episodes were about, to refresh our memories after the long pause. I will also explain and revisit the whole idea of why this project exists and how it is relevant to my practice as an artist.
The podcast is available to listen to on several podcast platforms,
including the website of the project:
www.opensourcegovernance.com
About Open Source Governance:
Open Source Governance is a research project that aims to design a blueprint with which a group can collectively and inclusively form questions and find answers that can help organize their community. The interdisciplinary project is a social design process that uses debates, workshops, case studies, publications, podcast, and other mediums to empower groups to find possible ways of self-governing. The concept departs from the disappointment with the representative systems in inclusively and fairly organizing societies and observation of available tools (namely open-source programming) that can replace or challenge the current systems in place.
Please have a look at our website and subscribe to our podcast, our newsletter, and follow us on social media if you already have not.
https://twitter.com/projectosg
https://www.instagram.com/projectosg/
we also have a Discord server that we encourage you to join:
http://discord.gg/z3mUrUWnZb
Sources and links:
- Tilburg University’s 1969 occupation led to the creation of the IMR: https://www.tilburguniversity.edu/magazine/tilburg-69-a-turning-point
- Palestinian banner and WdKA, 2021: https://mondoweiss.net/2021/06/netherlands-art-institute-cracks-down-on-free-speech-for-palestine-and-seizes-watermelon-banner/
Cover photo:
Tilburg University Auditorium 1969, Frans Godfroy standing left, cheering. Photographer unknown
music:
Unanswered Questions by Kevin MacLeod
Rollin at 5 – 210 – full by Kevin MacLeod
Monkeys Spinning Monkeys by Kevin MacLeod
Dances and Dames by Kevin MacLeod
all licensed under Attribution 3.0 Unported (CC BY 3.0)
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Puuttuva jakso?
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For the sixth episode of our podcast, I have invited Florian Cramer to discuss populism and alt-right with me. During our conversation, we touched upon many subjects; from populism and its contemporary history, different types of populism, populist leaders, Dutch politics, alt-right and its different shapes, to online mobilization of the right-wing, open-source programming and its history, elections, and direct democracy.
Florian Cramer is a reader, or practice-oriented research professor, in visual culture and Autonomous Practices at Willem de Kooning Academy, Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
He has written a large number of critical essays throughout his career which encompassed both DIY publishing and academic writing since the 1980s. Florian investigates transformations of cultural production, no matter whether they take place in institutional art systems or in popular culture. That's why he has been interested in meme culture for more than a decade.
The podcast is available to listen to on several platforms,
including the website of the project:
www.opensourcegovernance.com
About Open Source Governance:
Open Source Governance aims to design a blueprint with which a
group can collectively and inclusively form questions and find answers that can
help organize their community. The project is an interdisciplinary research and
social design process that uses debates, workshops, case studies, publications,
and other mediums to empower groups to find possible ways of self-governing.
This is done by investigating the wisdom of the crowd. At the core of the idea
lies the notion of governmentality. The concept departs from the disappointment
with the representative systems in inclusively and fairly organizing societies,
and observation of available tools (namely open-source programming) that can
replace or challenge the current systems in place.
Please have a look at our website and subscribe to our podcast,
our newsletter, and follow us on social media if you already did not.
https://twitter.com/projectosg
https://www.instagram.com/projectosg/
we also have a Discord server for our community that we encourage you to join:
http://discord.gg/z3mUrUWnZb
Cover photo:
Theo Huijgens
music:
Unanswered Questions by Kevin MacLeod
I Knew a Guy by Kevin MacLeod
Dances and Dames by Kevin MacLeod
all licensed under Attribution 3.0 Unported (CC BY 3.0)
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The central topic of this episode is trust and governance. I will be talking about trust within a government, how does trusting a government work, and why does the government need the trust of the people. I will introduce what instruments are available to keep the trust under check. And of course, I will introduce some issues there are regarding trust and governance when using the existing systems in place. I will refer to David van Reybrouck’s book ‘Against Elections’ to provide more in-depth analyses regarding the problem of trust and governance.
Then I will discuss ‘Liberal Democracy’ and its three pillars. Then I will talk about populism and will give a few examples about how it can be a great threat to trust and governance. Examples of Covid restrictions will be given as a way of comparison between how people from different parts of the world trust the functionality of their government.
The podcast is available to listen to on several platforms,
including the website of the project:
www.opensourcegovernance.com
About
Open Source Governance:
Open Source Governance aims to design a blueprint with which a group can collectively and inclusively form questions and find answers that can help organize their community. The project is an interdisciplinary research and social design process that uses debates, workshops, case studies, publications, and other mediums to empower groups to find possible ways of self-governing. This is done by investigating the wisdom of the crowd. At the core of the idea lies the notion of governmentality. The concept departs from the disappointment with the representative systems in inclusively and fairly organizing societies, and observation of available tools (namely open-source programming) that can replace or challenge the current systems in place.
Please have a look at our website and subscribe to our podcast, our newsletter, and follow us on social media if you already did not.
https://twitter.com/projectosg
https://www.instagram.com/projectosg/
sources:
Against Elections: The Case for Democracy
France 24 interview: Author David Van Reybrouck on why elections are outdated.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5hdt1xTc_Y&ab_channel=FRANCE24English
The rise of modern populism - Takis S. Pappas: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uMNwUh0X5eI&ab_channel=TED-Ed
The Rumor Camp: https://pendarnabipour.com/rumor-camp/
Cover photo:
Samuel Corum, Getty Images
music:
Unanswered Questions by Kevin MacLeod
Backed Vibes Clean by Kevin MacLeod
I Knew a Guy by Kevin MacLeod
Dances and Dames by Kevin MacLeod
all licensed under Attribution 3.0 Unported (CC BY 3.0)
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In this episode, I had a conversation with Quinsy Gario about Dutch politics. We discussed the structure of Dutch politics, its majority and minority political parties, the obstacles for the communities and the minorities to voice their opinion, the ever-growing centralization of power, and some recent examples to follow these topics.
Quinsy also discussed the colonial history of The Netherlands, who is Dutch, "The New Dutch" population origins, and much more.
In the end, we talked about Bij1, which is a new political party in The Netherlands that is fighting for minority rights and empowering people who are underrepresented.
About our guest Quinsy Gario:
Quinsy Gario is a performance-poet and artist from Curaçao and St. Maarten, two islands in the Caribbean that share continued occupation and colonization by the Netherlands. His work centers on decolonial remembering and unsettling institutional and interpersonal normalizations of colonial practices. Gario's most well-known work is Zwarte Piet Is Racisme (2011–2012). As a member of the collective Family Connection established in 2005 by Glenda Martinus and Gala Martinus, respectively his mother and aunt, his current research is about attempting to institute otherwise.
He is a Utrecht University media studies, gender studies and postcolonial studies alumnus and a graduate of the Master Artistic Research program of the Royal Academy of Art The Hague. He is a 2017 Humanity in Action Detroit Fellow, 2017/2018 BAK Fellow, 2019/2020 APASS participant and a 2020/2021 Sandberg Institute Critical Studies Fellow. Gario received among others the Royal Academy Master Thesis Prize 2017, the Black Excellence Award 2016, the Amsterdam Fringe Festival Silver Award 2015, The Kerwin Award 2014 and the Hollandse Nieuwe 12 Theatermakers Prize 2011. His work has been shown in among other places Van Abbemuseum (Eindhoven), MACBA (Barcelona), Latvian National Museum of Art (Riga), Stedelijk Museum (Amsterdam), MHKA (Antwerp), TENT (Rotterdam) and Göteborgs Konsthall (Gothenburg). Gario also ran for Dutch parliament as a candidate for the political party BIJ1 in the 2021 national elections.
About Open Source Governance:
Open Source Governance aims to design a blueprint with which a group can collectively and inclusively form questions and find answers that can help organize their community. The project is an interdisciplinary research and social design process that uses debates, workshops, case studies, publications, and other mediums to empower groups to find possible ways of self-governing. This is done by investigating the wisdom of the crowd. At the core of the idea lies the notion of governmentality. The concept departs from the disappointment with the representative systems in inclusively and fairly organizing societies, and observation of available tools (namely open-source programming) that can replace or challenge the current systems in place.
The podcast is available to listen to on several platforms, including the website of the project:
www.opensourcegovernance.com
Please have a look at our website and subscribe to our podcast, our newsletter, and follow us on social media if you already did not.
Cover image: Annemarija Gulbe
music:
Unanswered Questions by Kevin MacLeod
Backed Vibes Clean by Kevin MacLeod
Dances and Dames by Kevin MacLeod
all licensed under Attribution 3.0 Unported (CC BY 3.0)
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As a continuation to introducing direct and indirect democracy, in this episode I will explain what a referendum is and what different types it has. I will also introduce several common voting methods including plurality voting, Condorcet method, instant runoff, score voting, and the electoral college. Then I will carry on to explain what faults these voting methods might have.
Further, I argue that the questions composed for referendums are usually too large and they ignore minority rights. The minorities also will be neglected in many cases of electing representatives.
And finally, I will introduce the notion of The Tyranny of the Majority.
In the end, I would like to ask you to please read and educate yourself about the struggles of Palestinian people, and to please use the right terms when talking about Palestine and Israel. Apartheid, ethnic cleansing, and illegal occupation. Learn about #SheikhJarrah to understand what is going there at the moment when the tensions are high.
The podcast is available to listen to on several platforms, including the website of the project:
www.opensourcegovernance.com
About Open Source Governance:
Open Source Governance aims to design a blueprint with which a group can collectively and inclusively form questions and find answers that can help organize their community. The project is an interdisciplinary research and social design process that uses debates, workshops, case studies, publications, and other mediums to empower groups to find possible ways of self-governing. This is done by investigating the wisdom of the crowd. At the core of the idea lies the notion of governmentality. The concept departs from the disappointment with the representative systems in inclusively and fairly organizing societies, and observation of available tools (namely open-source programming) that can replace or challenge the current systems in place.
Please have a look at our website and subscribe to our podcast, our newsletter, and follow us on social media if you already did not.
De Gedroomde Stad episode about this project and my artistic practice (episode 4): https://www.cbkrotterdam.nl/nieuws/podcast-de-gedroomde-stad/
sources:
Referendum on Britannica: https://www.britannica.com/topic/referendum
Animation introducing different types of the referendum: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PaxVCsnox_4
Tyranny of the Majority: https://www.masterclass.com/articles/tyranny-of-the-majority-explained#what-does-tyranny-of-the-majority-mean
Referendums and initiatives: https://study.com/academy/lesson/what-is-a-referendum-definition-example.html
Cover image: Stux
music:
The song about Palestine by Eman Askar, TikTok, IG, FB: @emmasworld.101
Unanswered Questions by Kevin MacLeod
Backed Vibes Clean by Kevin MacLeod
Dances and Dames by Kevin MacLeod
all licensed under Attribution 3.0 Unported (CC BY 3.0)
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Representative systems are based on elections. These days elections are the best thing we know to practice democracy with. But are elections really a good tool for practicing democracy?
In this episode, I will give you theoretical and practical explanations about elections, how they have been and are practiced around the world, as well as some examples of sham and legitimate elections. In the end, I will cite from the book of David van Reybrouk called Against Elections, and I will refer to his opinion about how trust between the government and the public is missing when you look at elections.
The podcast is available to listen to on several platforms, including the website of the project:
www.opensourcegovernance.com
About Open Source Governance:
Open Source Governance aims to design a blueprint with which a group can collectively and inclusively form questions and find answers that can help organize their community. The project is an interdisciplinary research and social design process that uses debates, workshops, case studies, publications, and other mediums to empower groups to find possible ways of self-governing. This is done by investigating the wisdom of the crowd. At the core of the idea lies the notion of governmentality. The concept departs from the disappointment with the representative systems in inclusively and fairly organizing societies, and observation of available tools (namely open-source programming) that can replace or challenge the current systems in place.
Please have a look at our website and subscribe to our podcast, our newsletter, and follow us on social media if you already did not.
sources:
Against Elections by David van Reybrouk
Britannica https://www.britannica.com/topic/election-political-science
and several Wikipedia articles
cover image:
[According to US library of congress]
Title: N***o voting in Cardoza [i.e., Cardozo] High School in [Washington,] D.C. / [MST].
photographer: Trikosko, Marion S.,
Date: 1964 Nov. 3.
music:
Unanswered Questions by Kevin MacLeod
Backed Vibes Clean by Kevin MacLeod
Dances and Dames by Kevin MacLeod
all licensed under Attribution 3.0 Unported (CC BY 3.0)
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In this episode, I will introduce the representative system, how it works, and also I will talk a little bit about its history. I will dive into the flaws of the representative system, as well as its problems. And I will briefly explain why there is an urgent need for direct democracy.
The podcast is available to listen to on several platforms, including the website of the project:
www.opensourcegovernance.com
About Open Source Governance:
Open Source Governance aims to design a blueprint with which a group can collectively and inclusively form questions and find answers that can help organize their community. The project is an interdisciplinary research and social design process that uses debates, workshops, case studies, publications, and other mediums to empower groups to find possible ways of self-governing. This is done by investigating the wisdom of the crowd. At the core of the idea lies the notion of governmentality. The concept departs from the disappointment with the representative systems in inclusively and fairly organizing societies, and observation of available tools (namely open-source programming) that can replace or challenge the current systems in place.
Please have a look at our website and subscribe to our podcast, our newsletter, and follow us on social media if you already did not.
cover image:
The chamber of the House of Commons in London
photographer: unknown
music:
Unanswered Questions by Kevin MacLeod
Backed Vibes Clean by Kevin MacLeod
Dances and Dames by Kevin MacLeod
all licensed under Attribution 3.0 Unported (CC BY 3.0)
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This podcast is part of the project Open Source Governance. In this podcast we will discuss how to make collective decisions, and rethink the representative systems. Also, the terms and notions of collective decision making will be introduced, public sessions will be available to listen to, and most importantly, specialists and guests are invited to discuss several issues within the realm of different disciplines.
This episode is the introductory episode to the podcast in which you can learn what you can expect to receive by listening to this show.
The podcast is available to listen to on several platforms, including the website of the project:
www.opensourcegovernance.com
About Open Source Governance:
Open Source Governance aims to design a blueprint with which a group can collectively and inclusively form questions and find answers that can help organize their community. The project is an interdisciplinary research and social design process that uses debates, workshops, case studies, publications, and other mediums to empower groups to find possible ways of self-governing. This is done by investigating the wisdom of the crowd. At the core of the idea lies the notion of governmentality. The concept departs from the disappointment with the representative systems in inclusively and fairly organizing societies, and observation of available tools (namely open-source programming) that can replace or challenge the current systems in place.
Please have a look at our website and subscribe to our podcast, our newsletter, and follow us on social media if you already did not.
music:
Unanswered Questions by Kevin MacLeod
Backed Vibes Clean by Kevin MacLeod
Dances and Dames by Kevin MacLeod
all licensed under Attribution 3.0 Unported (CC BY 3.0)
