Open-source governmentFEB 27 2003

Adam Greenfield has written an RFC on the idea of an open-source constitution for post-national states:

The question then becomes, what kinds of constitutional structures are appropriate to furthering the stated aims in an internetworked, interdependent age? What sorts of arrangements of power between humans can account for the deep variation in beliefs and assumptions among the six billion of us who share this planet, while still providing for a common jurisprudence? What measures can be taken that enhance the common security without unduly infringing on the sovereignty of the individual?

I believe that a useful model for the desired structure can be found in the open-source or "free" software movement.

In practice, the open-source software community is quite good at producing software for techies by techies (Linux, Apache, Sendmail) but not very good at making software for use by a general audience. Will open-source government turn out the same? Constitutions for constitutional enthusiasts?