Democracy requires more than voting

Happy Halloween! I hope that your homes were visited by superheroes, villains, ghouls, ghosts, goblins, witches, and more. But nothing you saw on Halloween is as scary as the prospect of democracy diminishing into a dream. Thus, regardless of who you support in this year's election, please get out there and vote November 5th. If you don't make an effort to be heard, you won't be.

But don't assume that voting is enough to sustain our representative democracy and our freedoms. Many of the worst autocracies have some form of elections, if only to create the illusion of popular support of their governments. Free and fair elections are branches of the tree of liberty. But branches that are not attached to strong limbs, a solid trunk, and healthy roots, eventually die and break off.

We live in a free society, which is the fruit of governments that have low levels of corruption (the 24th least corrupt according to Transparency International). Corruption in our federal and state governments is kept in check by our systems of representative democracy, which comes from the free and fair elections we so cherish.

Without the freedoms of speech and the press, however—without the ability to openly dissent—our elections would become less free and less fair. Those freedoms don't come from words on a piece of paper. They come from those who are willing and able to defend those rights, from strong non-government institutions that serve as bulwarks of freedom.

Finally, we have strong non-government institutions because, for most of our history, knowledge of and skill in using the tools of democracy—meeting rules that enable people with different perspectives to debate civilly together, make collective decisions, and speak as one—were widespread.

Unfortunately, fewer and fewer people are learning how to use these tools of democracy. It takes a lot more work to study and apply these tools than simply showing up every two to four years to cast a ballot. But it is vital work; the roots of our freedoms come from our ability to use these basic tools.

If we can't work together with others who have similar goals and visions without resorting to mini-autocracies, there is little hope that we can sustain a free society at a broader level with countless others who have vastly different goals and visions for our country. Finding common ground and moving forward together takes work, but it's worth it.

It has become cliché to say that each election is the most important election ever. It is true that what we decide as a nation has great consequences for the future, not just of our country, but for the world. But even more consequential than any particular election is whether we are building our ability to deliberate using the tools of democracy. Even if we elect bad leaders, we can keep them in check, hold them to account in the court of public opinion, and elect better leaders as long as we maintain the strength of our elections, our freedoms of speech and press, and our non-government institutions, all of which depend on our ability to deliberate using the tools of democracy.

Thomas Jefferson was wrong when he said "The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants." Our nation has always been at its best when we work out our differences through non-violent means, and at its worst when some resort to violence. The roots of the tree of liberty are fed by knowledge in how to resolve differences using the tools of democracy, by learning how "We the People," rather than "Me, the Ruler," can form a more perfect union.

Again, regardless of who you support, please vote on November 5th. And thank you for your interest in this newsletter. It is intended to help educate its readers on the tools of democracy. By learning how to use these tools, you are helping to preserve our nation's freedoms.

Appeals all the way down (continued)

In the last newsletter, we heard about Carol, a School Board chair who was dealing with "Point of Order" Paulie and his attempt to appeal her ruling on a Point of Order while an Appeal was already pending. Fortunately, Carol handles the situation like a pro.

"The members will stand at ease," Carol says as she cracks open her copy of Robert's Rules of Order, Newly Revised (12th edition).

After a few moments of research, Carol says, "under RONR (12th ed.) 23:4, there is no appeal from the chair's decision on a point of order raised while an appeal is pending. The correctness of the ruling can only be brought up by a later motion. The chair's decision that each member, other than the chair, can only speak once during an appeal, even if the members were not reminded of the rule, cannot be appealed and stands."

Paulie is stunned speechless. He opens up his own copy of RONR, looks over, and nods in quiet approval of Carol's decisive and correct application of the rules.

The School Board meeting continues on. Paulie continues to raise Points of Order (he has a reputation to maintain, after all). But having seen that Carol uses good judgment grounded in the wisdom of the School Board's adopted rules of procedure, he defers more readily to her rulings, helping to ease tensions, depolarize the School Board, and promote better meetings.

Committee chaos

Charles chairs the Board of Trustees of a foundation that has been working for several months to develop a new grants program. A motion to approve the policies and procedures for the new grants program is pending when "Perfectionist" Penelope moves to refer the proposed policies and procedures to a committee to proofread them one more time before approval. The foundation's professional seconder, of course, seconds the motion.

Before Charles can state Penelope's motion, Sam rises to a Point of Order. After being recognized, Sam says, "the motion to Commit is incomplete."

Charles knows Sam is right. Penelope's motion did not name a particular committee or specify members of a special committee. But Charles also does not believe Penelope's motion will pass. The trustees have shown no interest in allowing further delay of the grants program.

How can Charles expedite the process of handling Penelope's motion to Commit (or Refer)? And can Charles find a way to still address Penelope's interest in cleaning up minor errors in the policies and procedures?

Share your ideas and then come back next time to find out how Charles keeps the Board on task.

News

The October 29th program, A Look at a Model for Public Discourse, was awesome. New York University Stern School of Business participants learned about how deliberative bodies compare with other mechanisms for public discourse, how parliamentary procedure supports deliberative bodies, and how to promote the study of and use of the tools of democracy to promote civil public discourse. Many thanks to Dean Victor Mullins for inviting me to speak.

The American Institute of Parliamentarian's 45th Annual AIP Winter Practicum is scheduled for January 16-18, at the Embassy Suites Hotel at 4315 University Center Drive. Although what happens in Vegas usually stays in Vegas, several days of intense study of parliamentary procedure will stick with you for life. View the proposed schedule and register today.