Controlled Democracy

I've been invited to speak on the topic of "how democracy can be realized in an entirely controlled context that nevertheless permanently announces the arrival of freedoms beyond our imagination."

I 'm inclined, unless someone posts comments that push me in another direction--and that I then, end up basically taking; I won't say stealing since, after all, you posted them here--to say that democracy cannot be realized in either a controlled or non-controlled context, that a context cannot be entirely controlled, and, that there are of course all sorts of freedoms completely incompatible with democracy. I don't think an entirely controlled context could permanently announce the arrival of freedoms beyond our imagination--but maybe it could; we just wouldn't understand the announcement.

The thing is, the context of the talk--if I end up accepting the invitation, which is still uncertain--is some kind of search engine project. The politics of search engines is a neat topic--but I'm not sure I have much to add on this--especially when it is framed as a question of democracy. To my mind, this very framing reinforces the ideological suppositions of communicative capitalism, the fantasy that information sharing, the circulation of contributions, is political or that it is part of a democratic aspiration rather than the deadlock of real existing democracies.

Comments

[Amish Lovelock]

That the democracy Thing cannot be realized is surely the whole point.

[Floyd]

Your brief dismissal of the internet as a tool for political transformation concerns me..I've never heard anything but positive comments on the prospects in that direction. It strikes me very generally as being an ideal technical solution for the well-known contingent problems of representative democracy. Could you say more, or direct me to a more detailed argument in that regard?

[Marcus]

There was an interesting piece in the Guardian that touched on some of these subjects. Here's the link
http://books.guardian.co.uk/departments/politicsphilosophyandsociety/story/0,,2046857,00.html

[Jodi]

Thanks, Amish.
Thanks, Floyd, for the link.

Floyd--I've written tons about this. For starters, buy (please! and purchase extras as gifts for friends) my book Publicity's Secret: How technoculture capitalizes on democracy.

Also, in the first issue of Cultural Politics there is an exchange with me, Doug Kellner, Mark Poster (it was recently translated in Chinese) on this as well.

[khalid]

amish, I don't think the internet will add much to politics-instead, it will possibly lead to the fragmentation of consciousness.

Is democratic politcs about sharing "information" or is it (partly) about deliberation and conversation? Having more information doesn't , to my mind at least, mean that one has anything more meaningful to say.

If politics is about fraternity or solidarity and not just liberty, then in what way will the internet contribute to politics?

Jodi, may I ask what is meant by 'Freedom beyond our imaginations'? This sounds like Bush's 'Infinite Justice'!

[jdean]

Khalid--good point! the mystery words 'freedom beyond imagination' do resonate with Bush rhetoric!

[Nick]

Also, Z himself has an interesting article in In These Times about the "revolutionary potential of the internet."

http://www.inthesetimes.com/article/3003/in_you_more_than_yourself/

On an unrelated note, I read your Zizek's Politics book and thought it was great. As a high school student, I thought it was a sweet way to understand some of the harder parts of his thought.

[khalid]

Jodi, I'm intrigued what these other freedoms that are completely incompatible with democracy are; I even wonder if there are any still outside the dominating idea of economic freedom. I think Brando's question in Apocalypse Now is still valid: "have you ever considered any true freedoms?"

To imagine freedom in a religious context may, indeed, be a 'freedom beyond our imagination' but I see technology -given that it is a product of capitalism-only enhancing a a particular type of mentality, a particular type of freedom.

[Anthony Paul Smith]

"As a high school student"

Damn! Good going.