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Advanced Technology and Open Democracy
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16959 |
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MODERN THOUGHT
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4 / 1990 |
6,460 Words |
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Jack N. Barkenbus
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As we approach the twenty-first century, it is becoming evident that a latent conflict between technological development and democracy is coming to the fore. That it has taken this long for the inherent conflict between the two to become manifest speaks to the remarkable consensus in Western societies on the desirability of technical advancement ad infinitum. The question most frequently posed until very recently has not been should we seek to promote technological development but, rather, how best can we ensure technological development. What once were seemingly self-evident virtues of advanced technology, however, are now being questioned by many. And as the consensus over technology breaks down, so too does belief that democracy provides a proper and/or sufficient form of governance.
The conflict between technological development and democratic governance resides very simply in the exclusive nature of technological expertise and ownership and the inclusive nature of democracy. The classical definition of democracy ("rule by the people") implies a significant role for every citizen in shaping the direction and governance of society. We know, of course, that not even Athens in the fifth century B.C. lived by that standard; and the achievement of classical or direct democracy has become even less feasible over time as city-states have give way to nation-states and as the tools or technologies that shape our lives have become more complex and difficult for citizens to comprehend. Still, the maintenance of democratic control over technology and its embedded organizations remains a firmly held goal of Western nations, even if it suffers somewhat in practice.
The thesis argued below is that advanced technology and democracy will continue to coexist. Western society will not see fit to eliminate one at the expense of the other. This coexistence, however, will at times b e contentious and not without costs. This is particularly true of technologies having broad environmental and ecological impacts upon the human condition. It is suggested that when technology and democracy are at loggerheads, it is more likely that the technology in question will be transformed or altered, than that democratic governance will be.
To reach the above conclusions, I will first review the reasons for the latent conflict between democratic governance and technology and provide examples in which such governance is impeding technological development. Some may claim that in these examples there is too much democracy. Perhaps more frequently, however, the opposite case is made, namely, that there is too little democratic governance of technology. This case will also be set forth. The center of the issue is an assault on technology and the questioning of it relationship to the public good. A theory of why this assault has been made will be tendered as well as an examination of why some democracies have been more prone to make this assault than others. Finally, it will be shown why several reforms that have been suggested for democracy to better ensure proper governance are unlikely to be enacted.
DEMOCRACY OR GUARDIANSHIP
In this age of democratic fervor, it is easy to forget that democracy, as a form of governance, has not always been so widely embraced. In fact, its dominance as a political philosophy is of relatively recent origins. The belief that the citizens of nation-states should direct and control their own fate has
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