2) Solving NATIONAL issues

The U.S. has "Monster Problems"

"Monster Problems" are BIG societal issues that seem impossible-to-solve but which must be solved. A short list of national Monster Problems are:

Increasing polarization, information silos, separate versions of "truth," no shared vision;
Radicalized people, conspiracy theories, rage without evidence, calling for violence, lack of listening;
Pandemic response, government mandates, distrust of science, Covid variants;
L-distribution of wealth and power, U.S. as an oligarchy, poverty, homelessness;
Increased corruption, special interests dominating the public interest, purchased politicians, legal bribery;
Unraveling of public institutions —threatened autocracy, fake news, runaway Supreme Court judgments, foreign manipulation of elections, breakdown of the rule of law, threats to voting rights, captured agencies/revolving doors for executives, etc.
Partisan gridlock, avoiding the BIG issues, politicians purchased by special interests, threatened loss of democracy, "Don't look up";
Declining trust in government, in elections, in the courts and one another; loss of the spirit of community;
Systemic racism, mysogyny, prejudice, violence directed at minorities;
Destruction of the commons ... e.g. aquifers, forests, trust in one another, spirit of community;
Our system is destroying our people ... e.g. special interests and making money comes first, our food system builds unhealthy bodies and destroys soils, encouraging over-consumption;
.... and many more

Our System is causing these Monsters

Our System no longer fits our situation. The U.S. Constitution may be the greatest social invention of all time. It is the underpinning for our system, outlining how we think, talk and make collective decisions as a nation. By establishing "the rules of the game" it sets up competition as the basis of our governance, economics and culture.... Great stuff. .... However, this competitive structure assumes that people, communities and corporations are in-dependent. Today, we live in a complex inter-dependent world, where cooperation is required more than competition. .As a nation we must act with "collective intelligence," not just individual freedoms where each of us pursues our individual happiness. ... Our system is missing a collective thinking process where we pursue the Public Interest as well as our Special Interests. ... Today in this new setting, it's like our society has no brain, just a heart, lungs and other organs competing for blood. This can't work.

To most people it seems as if there are only two alternative Systems of governance: "democracy" or "autocracy." But there is another System possible where, in addition, we all periodically engage in a "collective thinking" process. And we need some safe accessible way to facilitate this next System of "Wise Democracy" into being.

Good news: We (just us) can remedy our System

It is possible to change our system enough to make our "democracy" win/win once again, such that the Monster Problems start going away. We, a few of us with adequate resources, can facilitate the missing "We the People" conversation into being. Adding this all-inclusive, creative thinking process to our existing System is a change to the underlying structure of things. We call this strategy "Society's Breakthrough," which is the title of the 2002 book introducing this strategy: "Society's Breakthrough! Releasing Essential Wisdom and Virtue in All the People." The book assumed that a U.S. Constitutional amendment was needed to make the necessary change. But experiments later showed that Society's Breakthrough, the Wisdom Council Process applied nationally (and/or globally), can be set in motion by a citizen group. Basically, we are just providing some way for ll the people to take "time out," for American's to stop and think together creatively. ... Let's explore how this can work:

What is your wish for America?

Given that we are trapped in the Human Predicament with many Monster Problems please make the biggest wish you can for American society, some way we can get out of this mess.

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

...............................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Here's our wish for America ... the "Monster Wish"

Below is an articulation of what we call the "Monster Wish" because 1) It encompasses most all the wishes of people; 2) It provides a way that we can achieve breakthrough progress on each Monster Problem; and 3) It provides for transforming the system so we stop creating these Monster Problems.

That we (just us) can convene a new national conversation where all the people get involved; where we face each Monster Problem collaboratively and creatively and achieve breakthrough results; where we co-create a shared perspective about what is happening, what we want and how to proceed; where the existence of this new ongoing “We the People” conversation, by itself, provides the needed structural change for our System to become a "Wise Democracy"; where in this new system "We the People" provide ongoing responsible leadership to elected officials, corporations and the culture; and where in the process all of us gain increased awareness, understanding, freedom, involvement, empowerment and consciousness.

Good news! "This Monster Wish" is achievable!

Society's Breakthrough can facilitate this "Monster Wish" into being

.The Monster Wish is best achieved through a U.S. Constitutional Amendment. But with adequate resources and the help of enough people who understand how it works, we, just us, can set it up. A well-funded non-profit organization, or, a network of organizations, or even just a few well-meaning people with a media partner can facilitate a legitimate, all-inclusive, intelligent "We the People" into being. We don't need to sell the idea first. We can just start by setting up Society's Breakthrough so a legitimate "We the People" conversation comes into being. ... Especially when people get frustrated with Congress or the Supreme Court or how our economics is destroying the planet, it is natural to want to speak about it in a meaningful setting. This is that missing meaningful, empowering, respectful, intelligent, difference-making conversation.

Society's Breakthrough is based on a set of social innovations, which allow us to facilitate the particular kind of conversation required for a legitimate national "We the People". Choice-creating is the magical-seeming kind of thinking that we all know how to do, which empowers group wisdom and unity. Dynamic Facilitation is how we can assure chore-creating in small groups. And the Wisdom Council Process is how we can expand the process to large systems. Society's Breakthrough is the application of the Wisdom Council Process to the nation (and/or to the world), which can spark a transformation of "the System".

Note: There is no identifiable down side to this strategy. We are just adding the new, missing "We the People" conversation to what we already have. Every bit of this is voluntary. But because the conversation is in the spirit of choice-creating, We start facing Monster Problems one at a time, achieve breakthrough answers and assure action. Plus because this new added public conversation is ongoing, it is a structural change to our System of governance and economics. It's a way that "We the People" can assume ultimate responsibility ... like in a real democracy.

Below is a short 9 min video briefly describing the actions needed to set up the national Wisdom Council Process. This talk was given on 1/25/17 to the Democrats of Spokane WA, just after the installation of Donald J. Trump as President of the U.S. Because this strategy is "trans-partisan", this talk could just as easily been given to the Republicans.

To understand how the Wisdom Council Process can achieve the Monster Wish please see the 5-part video series "Essential Wisdom for solving society's biggest problems".

Achieving the Monster Wish provides for solving the Monster Problems

Let's check back on the Monster Problems listed earlier ...

Increasing polarization, information silos, separate versions of "truth," no shared vision; ... The National Wisdom Council Process facilitates a new kind of public conversation where people naturally listen to one another and co-determine "what is truth", "what we want", "how to get there" ... So just implementing the new conversation is the solution to these mis-information silos.
Radicalized people, conspiracy theories, rage without evidence, calling for violence lack of listening ... Choice-creating, is a healing process where people listen to diverse voices and co-create a shared perspective. In the process people reawaken critical thinking, systems thinking and creative thinking so that the radicalization process is muted.
Pandemics, excess government mandates, distrust of science, Covid variants ... Our System focuses on individual freedoms with little regard for the collective need. Here's a way to maintain and enhance individual freedoms while we all face and co-determine what is the best for all. It's "We the People" talking things over creatively and collaboratively, co-creating a shared strategy for addressing both collective and individual needs and then providing responsible leadership to government going forward. This beyond government mandates, to where we all figure things out together and oversee the implementation of our strategy.
L-curve distribution of wealth and power, U.S. as an oligarchy, poverty, homelessness ... Our current System is like the game of Monopoly: One player wins everything. Everyone else loses. What's missing is the spirit of national collaboration and community that makes the current mal-distribution of wealth deeply embarrassing. One aspect of addressing this issue is to facilitate a change in the game-mentality, where we voluntarily stop trying to win as much as we can ... and shift to a collaborative problem-solving mentality.
Increasing corruption, special interests dominating the public interest, purchased politicians, bribery ... There is no sense of the "Public Interest" in our current System. It's just a competition of Special Interests. But Society's Breakthrough creates the missing voice of "We the People" and a clear expression of the Public Interest. It's a new management System, beyond capitalism, where more primarily we seek to realize the 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. ... Society's Breakthrough establishes a new collective thinking capability and a new public institution, "We the People", which is ongoing. This provides a way that We can establish trustworthy public institutions and reshape our social contract.
Partisan gridlock, avoiding the BIG issues, politicians incapable of agreeing, threatened loss of democracy ... Quality leadership cannot come from within the partisan battle. A way to transcend the partisan battle is to enlist the participation of all people in a creative endeavor, solving real problems. This is a higher form of democracy, what we call "Wise Democracy." Here we face the Monster Problems one at a time, reach unity 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. Here's a way that "We the People" of the 21st century can take responsibility for our System and institutions back from an 18th century "We the People" that is currently in charge. Now, in unity, we can start designing a 21st century system.
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. On the other hand an ongoing national choice-creating conversation sets up a system of valuing diversity. In choice-creating minority voices 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. Society's Breakthrough restructures our System so that we all meet to consider the well-being of the commons and to responsibly manage it.
Our system is destroying our people ... e.g. special interests and making money comes first, our food system builds unhealthy bodies and destroys soils, pursuit of over-consumption ... Together we are all riding in an airplane on auto-pilot, heading toward a mountain. We are stuck in a System that is forcing us to over-consume. And increasingly people know it, and feel the desperation of our situation. With Society's Breakthrough "We" can check in on our situation and our 18th century system. And make adjustments. Here's a way all of us can get involved in making real headway.
etc.

Additional benefits!

Society's Breakthrough can facilitate the necessary "We the People" conversation to achieve even more positive benefits:

We shift our thinking ... from a basis in judgment (decision-making) to a basis in creativity (i.e. choice-creating), from an emphasis on self-aggrandizement to service.
We shift from a "constitutional republic" to being a "Wise Democracy" ... where "We the People" are ultimately in charge.
We heal deep divisions and trauma ... Choice-creating is a trauma-healing conversation. (See the archived video "Healing Trauma and Dynamic Facilitation" 2009)
We start aligning our actions with our values ... e.g. to reshape our budget priorities
People's work will have real meaning ... Currently many people have jobs focused on profits as primary, often taking advantage of others or the commons, vs. serving the public interest. Through this process comes a reshaping of our work lives so we're all contributing.
We shift our economics from capitalism to "ToBe-ism". This doesn't replace capitalism but adds the missing human part where we are all pursuing a shared vision and collaborating.
etc.

This process already works 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"). In Nov 2021 there is a national experiment in Austria on the issue of "climate change".

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

The Citizens Amendment ... the history of this idea

During the years 1993 to 2002, we thought a U.S. Constitutional Amendment was needed to establish a legitimate "We the People" for the nation. This "Citizens Amendment" was the focus of the 2002 book by Jim Rough: "Society's Breakthrough! Releasing Essential Wisdom and Virtue in All the People". ... But after 20+ years of experiments and adoptions of the Wisdom Council Process, especially by governments in Europe, we now know that the "magic sauce" for establishing a legitimate "We the People" lies in our ability to reliably facilitate "choice-creating" at large scale. Ideally, the Constitutional Amendment will still happen. But it should emerge naturally as "step 8", not be proposed as "step 1".

Note: It is difficult to find any risk to this strategy. Basically, we just gather a small number of random people and dynamically facilitate them over a couple days to come to unity. They give a speech and they go away. Then in a few months a new random group is gathered and the process is repeated. Where is the risk in that? ... But obviously since this process transforms the System, just hearing about the idea can feel risky and threatening even when no specific concern can be identified. The real risk is to assume that our current system will work into the future, that we can continue to operate without cooperartion and "collective intelligence", trusting in the design of the Founders.

Additional resources

Video Seminar (5-parts): "Essential Wisdom for Solving Society's Biggest Essential Wisdom 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
Short video on “How to reform democracy”
Book (2002) “Society’s Breakthrough! Releasing Essential Wisdom and Virtue in All the People”