Balkinization: Constitution Making In the Modern Era?

Constitution Making In the Modern Era?

Rick Pildes

In the wake of its devastating financial meltdown, Iceland is drawing up a new constitution. Apparently Iceland is "crowdsourcing" the drafting of this constitution. Here's a brief excerpt, from the online journal Good Politics, of the exceptionally participatory process involved; the full story is here.

"The country's 25-member constitutional council is posting draft clauses on its website and inviting the public to comment on them there or on its Facebook page. And their comments are actually being incorporated into the document. The council also has Twitter, YouTube, and Flickr accounts and is streaming all of its meetings live. It's perhaps the most open and participatory constitutional process in modern history (the Greeks were pretty good at democracy in their time)."

Is this the ideal of how constitutions should be designed in the modern age (even if possible, if at all, only in small countries)? Or a nightmare vision of participatory democracy run amok?

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Posted 3:46 PM by Rick Pildes [link]

Comments:

My answer:

" ... a nightmare vision of participatory democracy run amok."

Consider how the Iraqi constitution came about, with some American assistance. But it did not include a provision similar to our Second Amendment and this in a country where guns, rifles, etc, would be fired in celebration of just about any "bazaar" event.

Just imagine a Constitutional Convention as Sandy seems to wish for, with the impact of Facebook, Tweats, and other E-socializing for the "ordinary" people to offer suggestions. Just imagine what a new Second Amendment might end up looking like as a follow up to Heller and McDonald v. Chicago. Just imagine the wording of a new Commerce Clause with all those long sufferers of "Wickburn" and the newer Raich sufferers.

Iceland is on the rocks. America's constitution should be neat.

# posted by

Shag from Brookline : 9:53 AM

A constitution is a compact between the people and their government protecting the rights of the former and imposing limits on the power of the latter. Thus, it should be perfectly natural that the people should have a hand in drafting the instrument.

Our founders hardly drafted our Constitution in a vacuum. The provisions of the Constitution were publicly discussed and the document amended with a Bill of Rights by public demand.

Social networking technology makes this process even more accessible to the people. Iceland should be commended for its efforts to directly consult with the people in the drafting of their constitution.

On a side note, the Tea Party has been using the same bottom up method of developing ideas and positions for two years now.

Democracy 2.0.

# posted by

Bart DePalma : 5:12 PM

Shag:

Just imagine a Constitutional Convention as Sandy seems to wish for, with the impact of Facebook, Tweats, and other E-socializing for the "ordinary" people to offer suggestions. Just imagine what a new Second Amendment might end up looking like as a follow up to Heller and McDonald v. Chicago. Just imagine the wording of a new Commerce Clause with all those long sufferers of "Wickburn" and the newer Raich sufferers.

It would likely be a nightmare for Sandy and other progressives and a delight to Tea Party folks.

# posted by

Bart DePalma : 5:15 PM

Our yodeler, with this:

" ... and a delight to Tea Party folks."

revels in chaos and the tyranny of the minority. No, the nightmare would be for America, as even moderate and conservative Republicans would cringe at the Tea Party movement, especially if our yodeler is an example of its exemplars.

# posted by

Shag from Brookline : 6:28 AM

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# posted by

Unknown : 2:55 PM