2) Solving NATIONAL issues

The U.S. has "Monster Problems"

"Monster Problems" are existential issues that seem impossible-to-solve. A short list of national Monster Problems are below. (We think there is a holistic solution approach, an 8-step "holution" by which it's possible to solve all these issues: The Wise Democracy Project.)

The collapse of the America ideal and the unraveling of public institutions —threatened autocracy, fake news, runaway Supreme Court, foreign manipulation of elections, breakdown of the rule of law, threats to voting rights, captured agencies/revolving doors for executives, weaponized DOJ, etc.
Increasing polarization, media silos, separate versions of "truth," lack of shared vision;
Radicalized people, conspiracy theories, social media info-sphere, rage without evidence, calling for violence, lack of listening;
Pandemic mismanagement, government mandates, distrust of science, never-ending disease variants;
L-shaped distribution of wealth and power, U.S. is an oligarchy, poverty, homelessness, oppressive school debt for young adults;
Increased corruption, special interests dominating the public interest, legal bribery of politicians;
Poor collective thinking, partisan gridlock in Congress, avoiding the BIG issues, threatened loss of democracy, massive need for governmental reform;
Declining trust in elections, the courts, governments and one another; losing the spirit of trust and community;
Systemic racism, misogyny, caste-system prejudice, violence directed at minorities;
Immigration policies that aren't working, generating fear;
Destruction of the commons ... e.g. aquifers, forests, trust, spirit of community;
Our system is destroying our people ... e.g. special interests dominate the public interest; there is a crisis of meaning where making money has become top priority; our food system builds unhealthy bodies and destroys soils; over-consumption is encouraged
.... and many more

Our SYSTEM is causing these Monsters (This opens the door to holistic solution possibilities)

Today most people are oriented toward only two Systems of governance: autocracy or "democracy". At the Center for Wise Democracy we call them the "Triangle" and the "Box" Systems. The Triangle System is autocratic with a King-figure or "Dear Leader" in charge. In the 18th Century the U.S. transitioned from the Triangle to the Box by replacing the King with a Social Contract, the U.S. Constitution. This set up a new level of self-determination and freedom for people to "pursue their own happiness." And it also set up competition, supposedly within fair rules, as the basic dynamic of the culture.

Even though people, organizations, political parties and branches of government are competing in a game-like structure, the Box System can generate collective intelligence, but only as long as the people are in-dependent. As they become increasingly inter-dependent, the fairness of the competition breaks down, collective stupidity arises and "Monster Problems" like the ones listed above are generated. In the U.S. people break into two camps: one, trying to fix the Box and the other, seeking a "strong leader" and a return to the Triangle.

Good news: There is a third possibility, the Circle System. It's a way out of this dilemma, but it's not easy to appreciate because it requires a set of Social Innovations that are not yet well understood. Periodically, all of us need to take "time out," face the Monster Problems together respectfully and creatively, reach shared conclusions and provide responsible leadership to government, the economy and the culture. If done in an ongoing way, then the missing "We the People" conversation is added to our existing Box System. With this added "We the People" conversation We not only achieve breakthrough progress on each Monster but over time We transition to the Circle System and stop creating these Monsters in the first place. So with this change the ultimate authority of society transitions from 1) the "Dear Leader" of the Triangle, to 2) the Social Contract of the Box, to 3) the living "We the People" of the Circle. The Constitution remains untouched. It's still there. But as we all get involved and reach shared perspectives over time it will dawn on us (and the Supreme Court) that there is no higher authority than 'We the People' of today."

The Wisdom Council Process can facilitate this national transformation. It offers a way that a few of us can convene and facilitate this nation-wide, all-inclusive "We the People" conversation. We call this application of the Wisdom Council Process: "The Wise Democracy Project". Each of the 8 steps is accessible and beneficial. At first, this Project just creates a voice of the Public Interest, which gets added to the normal battle of Special Interests. This voice grows in power to affect legislators, philanthropies, NGO's and the culture. Partisan battling is reduced and legislators become free to serve the Public Interest. Then as more people participate a legitimate thoughtful responsible "We the People" comes into being, capable of solving the Monsters. And our System is now the Circle, with a more democratic system of governance and economics. ... Note! There is no identifiable risk to any of this. It's just adding a voluntary conversation to what exists.

This works because of choice-creating, the "magic sauce." Naturally, we need to start facing our Monster Problems together in a collaborative spirit. But our so-called "democracy," the Box System, pretty much prevents this. Instead, it sets up a “decision-making competition” among special interests. And it sets up the wrong kind of conversation, based in judgment rather than creativity, which we might describe with words like debate, discussion, dialogue, deliberation, negotiation, input, and decision-making. These forms of talking and thinking work well within the Box and are often preliminary to voting. But a different kind of conversation is required if all of us are to come together as "We the People." We call it "choice-creating." This is where we periodically all step back away from the judgment-based dynamic, face the high-care impossible-seeming issues creatively, listen respectfully to diverse views and seek a unified perspective through shifts and breakthroughs.

Understanding choice-creating is key to understanding how this solution strategy works. It’s the kind of thinking that sometimes arises in a crisis, where people rise to the occasion and accomplish miracles. Dynamic Facilitation reliably evokes choice-creating in a small group of people. And the Wisdom Council Process evokes choice-creating among a large System of people. The Wise Democracy Project lists the steps needed for leveraging ourselves out of our current predicament..

What is your wish for the U.S.? ... Make the biggest wish you can.

Not only does the "Wise Democracy Project" offer a way to solve the Monster Problems, but it also sets up a new System that works far better for all of us. And, we think it provides a way to achieve your biggest wish for America! ... To test this, write your wish. Aim high!

I wish ... . .................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

We think the Wise Democracy Project will achieve your wish. To illustrate we've created a Monster Wish, which can be achieved through "The Wise Democracy Project." And we think if the Monster Wish is achieved, your wish will be too. See The Monster Wish.

The Wise Democracy Project —8 steps to accomplish the "Monster Wish"

The Wise Democracy Project is eight steps designed to facilitate all the people to come together as a legitimate, contemporary "We the People" of the United States, capable of providing wise leadership to government, the economy, the culture and the world. Originally described in the 2002 book, Society's Breakthrough! Releasing Essential Wisdom and Virtue in All the People by Jim Rough, it was assumed that an Amendment to the existing Constitution was required to spark this deep change of Systems (i.e. the Wise-Democracy Amendment). But then through experiments and experiences we discovered that the Amendment isn't needed. Just a few well-meaning people with enough resources who understand the Social Innovations could set this Project in motion. (See the Essential Wisdom for Solving Society's Biggest Problems Seminar)

Below is a summary of the basic steps of The Wise Democracy Project. For more detail see The Wise Democracy Project.

Gather "Just Us" and adequate resources
Identify the first Monster Problem to address
Randomly select 10 to 16 people
Use Dynamic Facilitation to reliably evoke the spirit of "choice-creating" in each Wisdom Council
Convene a live "national community" meeting where the Wisdom Council presents the story of its journey & unified conclusions
Structure national Wisdom Councils to be held regularly
Provide for the new whole-nation conversation to become ever more inclusive
Provide ways for all to learn more about this holistic model of change, especially the mode of thinking (i.e. choice-creating) and our way to reliably evoke it (i.e. Dynamic Facilitation)

Video: "American democracy is collapsing: A BREAKTHROUGH is needed"

This talk was presented to the Fix Democracy First network just after the second election of Donald Trump. (45 min)

What are the benefits of the Wise Democracy Project?

Benefits happen in many ways, including ...

THE 8 STEPS. Pretty much each step of the Wise Democracy Project is a benefit to us all. For instance, identifying the current issue we are all working on; creating a living symbol of us all that we can picture; achieving shared sense of the Public Will; the many resulting local and web-based small group conversations; the added learnings about choice-creating, Dynamic Facilitation and the Wisdom Council Process; etc.
The CONTENT of what Wisdom Councils say. Each Wisdom Council will address a chosen issue and develop shared conclusions on what is really going on (i.e. the Truth); what we want (i.e. the Vision); and what we need to do about it (the best Strategy). This reflection to the general public sparks an added new kind of public conversation without the special interest battles and rancor.
The ONGOING nature of the Wisdom Councils evolves ever greater participation and greater clarity about what is needed. It's a shift from the usual political battling where Special Interests win over one another to a heartfelt collaboration in the Public Interest.. The evolving content conclusions powerfully influence elected officials, corporate leaders, NGO's, the culture, media, and individuals.
The new PROCESS of thinking that becomes the quest for best answers rather than arguing, promoting, judging and influencing. This added conversation is community-building instead of team-building. The shift is from a basis in judgment to a basis in judgment and away from self-interest to the public-interest. . This kind of talking is healing in many ways:... e.g. anxieties, polarization, traumas, the crisis of meaning, etc. ...
The SYSTEM. This Project adds the missing "We the People" conversation, which is a shift from the Box System (or the Triangle) to the Circle System. We shift from being a "constitutional republic," where a social contract is ultimately in charge, to being a "Wise Democracy," where a wise and responsible "We the People" is ultimately in charge. This System's transformation is a restructuring of our economics as well, away from profit maximization and commodification of people to a pursuit of meaning and service. We call the new economics "ToBe-ism."
YOUR WISH. Because this Project can achieve the Monster Wish we believe it can achieve your wish as well. What do you think?

Checking back on the Monster Problems

To describe all the ways this Wise Democracy Project will affect the Monsters gets complex. Below are just a few hints about what can happen.

Increasing polarization, information silos, separate versions of "truth," no shared vision; ... The Wise Democracy Project facilitates a new kind of public conversation where people listen to one another and co-determine "what is truth", "what we want", "how to get there" ... So just the new conversation by itself is a solution to mis-information, information silos, polarization, recognizing the truth, etc.
Radicalized people, conspiracy theories, rage without evidence, calling for violence lack of listening ... There is no creative, collaborative thinking process in our System. There is just back and forth discussions, broadcast propaganda, expert analysis, small-scale dialogues and the like ... then a vote where individual judgments are added. Of course, these generate dysfunctional results. The missing conversation is one ongoing whole-nation choice-creating conversation where we all talk together about the Monster issues and reach shared conclusions. The Wise Democracy Project adds back this missing "We the People" conversation, turning diversity and emotions into assets rather than liabilities.
Pandemics, excess government mandates, distrust of science, Covid variants ... Our System focuses on individual freedoms with little regard for the collective need. In a pandemic, for instance, "herd immunity" is needed but government mandates go against the basic premise of individual freedom. How might we resolve this? The Wise Democracy Project provides a way for the people to talk over this dilemma and work out a multi-layered plan for what's needed. "We the People" can choose what we want to do in a way that experts and governments can't. ... Our conclusions might include government monitoring, support for research, questions to science, etc.
L-curve distribution of wealth and power, U.S. as an oligarchy, poverty, homelessness ... Our current System is like the game of Monopoly: In the end one player wins everything and everyone else loses. What's missing is for the spirit of national collaboration and community to become more important in people's minds than "winning the competition." The Wise Democracy Project provides a way that can happen through voluntary shifts of motivation.
Increasing corruption, special interests dominating the public interest, legalized bribing of politicians and judges ... There is little sense of the "Public Interest" in our current System. Instead we have set up a competition of Special Interests with the presumption that ultimately the "invisible hand" will somehow make things better for everyone. But the invisible hand doesn't work in an oligarchy. The Wise Democracy Project creates a clear expression of the Public Interest and a clear desire among all of us to realize our shared vision.
Unraveling of public institutions —threatened autocracy, fake news, runaway Supreme Court rulings, foreign manipulation of elections, breakdown of the rule of law, threats to voting rights, captured agencies/revolving doors for executives, etc. ... The Wise Democracy Project establishes a new collective thinking capability and a new public, living entity, "We the People." We can then establish trustworthy public institutions and reshape our social contract.
Partisan gridlock, avoiding the BIG issues, politicians incapable of listening, threatened loss of democracy ... Quality leadership cannot come from within the partisan battle over incomplete solution strategies.. Key is to transcend the partisan battle by enlisting the participation of all people in creatively solving the problems. This is a higher form of democracy, what we call "Wise Democracy." We face the Monster Problems one at a time, reach unity on what needs to happen and provide responsible direction to elected officials, the marketplace and the culture.
Declining trust in government, elections, the courts and one another; loss of the spirit of community ... When the people face difficult problems and come together on what's needed, this builds trust. When "We the People" of the 21st century take responsibility for our System and its institutions, this builds trust as well. Now, in unity, we can start designing a System for the 21st century.
Systemic racism, mysogyny, prejudice, violence directed at minorities ... Our current System is rooted in "decision-making", which literally means "cutting away" ... e.g. a judging process that "cuts away" the minority people, the minority viewpoints, our feelings, etc. On the other hand a choice-creating conversation minority voices and feelings are necessary to achieve creative shifts and breakthroughs.
Destruction of the commons ... e.g. aquifers, forests, trust in government, spirit of community ... The Tragedy of the Commons happens because we are structured to be self-interested parties taking from the commons, with essentially no provision for the well-being of the whole. The Wise Democracy Project provides for us to restructure our System so we can responsibly manage the commons.
Our system is destroying our people ... e.g. special interests dominate the public interest; there is a crisis of meaning where making money has become top priority; our food system builds unhealthy bodies and destroys soils; over-consumption is encouraged ... Together we are all riding in an airplane that's heading toward a mountain.. We are stuck in a System that is forcing us to over-consume. Both government and the economy are corrupt in this way. Increasingly people feel the desperation of our situation. With the Wise Democracy Project a smart and powerful "We the People" comes into existence, where "we all" can understand our situation together and design a viable remedy.
etc.

We already have experience with this process at large scale!

This short (5 min) video (in English) describes one national Wisdom Council experiment in Germany. Note: German-speaking governments refer to the Wisdom Council as "Bürgerat" (i.e."Civic Council").

Civic Council Project 2016 - German Ministry for the Environment - BMUB from Martin Rausch on Vimeo.

Additional resources

Video Seminar (5-parts): "Essential Wisdom for Solving Society's Biggest Issues
Article: 'A Rebirth of 'We the People', Jim Rough, The Good Society, Penn State University Press, Volume 13, Number 2, 2004 pp 44-48
Video: ... Healing Polarization in Society (4min)
Handout ... "How to Fix America ... And Become a Real Democracy"
Chart: Seven strategies to achieve the "Ideal of Democracy" in America
Book (2002) “Society’s Breakthrough! Releasing Essential Wisdom and Virtue in All the People”