Web stunt or participatory democracy? (Score 2, Interesting)

Such efforts may well be able to capitalize upon the wisdom of crowds, but equally as important is that it helps people develop ownership of politics at a fundamental level. The Dean campaign was heavily "owned" by its supporters. It was dominated by the sincere solicitation of input, a high-velocity top-down and bottom-up flow of ideas, decentralized decision-making, and sustained local action. Joe Trippi, http://www.joetrippi.com/, correctly characterizes this dynamic of the campaign as I experienced it from the grassroots level. He frames it as a new, technology-enabled form of participatory democracy. Looking through this (admittedly) idealistic lens, I think having a PAC ask how best to spend the money donated to it could be a micro instance of this greater, transformed mode of political action. If people feel empowered by being sincerely let into the process and become more sustained, everyday participants, it will help fix the system.