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";
- Radicalized people, conspiracy theories, rage without evidence, calling for violence, lack of listening;
- Pandemics, objection to government mandates, distrust of science, new Covid variants;
- L-curve distribution of wealth and power, U.S. as an oligarchy, poverty, homelessness;
- Increasing corruption, special interests dominating the public interest, purchased politicians, bribery;
- Unraveling of public institutions —threatened loss of democracy, fake news, 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 incapable of agreeing, threatened loss of democracy;
- Declining trust in government, elections & the courts, loss of community, risk of autocracy;
- Systemic racism, mysogyny, prejudice, violence directed at minorities;
- Destruction of the commons ... e.g. aquifers, forests, trust in government, spirit of community;
- Our system is destroying our people ... e.g. limits our thinking, the food system builds unhealthy bodies and destroys soils, over-consumption;
- .... and many more
These problems are symptoms of our failing System
Our System no longer fits our situation. The U.S. Constitution may be the greatest social invention of all time. It is the structural underpinnings for our system of collective thinking, including governance, economics and culture. It sets up "the rules of the game", which provide for individual freedoms within limits. And it limits the role of coercive government. Great stuff. But this structure sets up a System fundamentally based in competition. Our System sets up a giant battle of Special Interests assuming that this will lead to the optimal "Public Interest." But there is no collective thinking process! There is no way in our System by which "we" can come together again as "We the People" to assess how we are doing. ... Clearly, in a complex interdependent world such a competitive System design will cause unsolvable problems that will destroy itself, like if the heart and lungs of your body start competing for blood. It just can't work into the future.
To most people it seems as if there are only two alternative Systems: "democracy" and "autocracy." But neither of these can work in a complex interdependent future. Our next System must have an inclusive, informed, capable "collective thinking" process. And we need some safe accessible way to facilitate this next System of "Wise Democracy" into being.
Good news! From all indicators it is not hard to make our "democracy" win/win once again, where these Monster Problems start going away. We, a few of us with adequate support, can facilitate the missing "We the People" conversation into the being. It's a deep restructuring of our existing System. But it's also a simple, safe addition to what we already have. 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." But the book assumes that a U.S. Constitutional amendment is needed. Since then experiments have shown that Society's Breakthrough, the Wisdom Council Process applied nationally (and/or globally), can be enough. Basically, all that's needed is some way to provide periodic moments of "time out" for all of Americans (or other nations) to stop and think together ... for us all to face the Monster Problems and achieve breakthrough progress, where we all speak with one voice and provide responsible leadership to our governments, economy and culture. ... Let's explore how this can work:
To most people it seems as if there are only two alternative Systems: "democracy" and "autocracy." But neither of these can work in a complex interdependent future. Our next System must have an inclusive, informed, capable "collective thinking" process. And we need some safe accessible way to facilitate this next System of "Wise Democracy" into being.
Good news! From all indicators it is not hard to make our "democracy" win/win once again, where these Monster Problems start going away. We, a few of us with adequate support, can facilitate the missing "We the People" conversation into the being. It's a deep restructuring of our existing System. But it's also a simple, safe addition to what we already have. 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." But the book assumes that a U.S. Constitutional amendment is needed. Since then experiments have shown that Society's Breakthrough, the Wisdom Council Process applied nationally (and/or globally), can be enough. Basically, all that's needed is some way to provide periodic moments of "time out" for all of Americans (or other nations) to stop and think together ... for us all to face the Monster Problems and achieve breakthrough progress, where we all speak with one voice and provide responsible leadership to our governments, economy and culture. ... Let's explore how this can work:
How might we solve all these "Monster Problems" at once?
First, please make a wish for American society ... Go ahead and make it as BIG as you possibly can.
I wish ...........................................................................................................................
Below is what we call the "Monster Wish," which encompasses most wishes that people express. [No fair! ... Don't look until YOU make your wish!!]
I wish ...........................................................................................................................
Below is what we call the "Monster Wish," which encompasses most wishes that people express. [No fair! ... Don't look until YOU make your wish!!]
The "Monster Wish"
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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 breakthroughs; 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 "We the People" provide ongoing wise leadership to elected officials, corporations and the culture; and where all of us gain increased awareness, understanding, freedom, involvement, empowerment and consciousness.
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If this Monster Wish could be achieved most all of the Monster Problems start going away. And we all can live in a System that facilitates us to become collectively (and individually) intelligent. ... Good news! We believe "The Monster Wish" is achievable!
Society's Breakthrough can facilitate this "Monster Wish" into reality
.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 can get started now. A well-funded non-profit organization, or, a network of organizations, or even just a few well-meaning people with an established media partner can facilitate a legitimate "We the People" into being. We don't need to explain and sell the idea to lots of people first. We can just start the new "We the People" conversation in a way that people want to become involved. Especially when people get frustrated with Congress or how our economics is destroying the planet, it is natural for them to join this meaningful, empowering, difference-making conversation, where we finally start talking respectfully and intelligently about what really matters.
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.
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 Monster Problems
Let's check back on the Monster Problems listed earlier ...
- InIncreasing polarization, information silos, separate versions of "truth" ... 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, objection to government mandates, distrust of science, new 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 loss of democracy, fake news, 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, loss of community, risk of autocracy ... 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. limits our thinking, the food system builds unhealthy bodies and destroys soils, over-consumption, etc. ... 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".
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.
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 BiggestEssential 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”