In creating the sixth republic, we have an advantage the founders of the first and the reformers of the fourth lacked: we have more collected data about methods and processes of governing and their outcomes. We have more tools to analyze the data as well, and other, better-functioning societies to be emulated. In addition to this, real world people have personal experiences comparatively unbiased by preconceptions or ideology, or at minimum we are capable of recognizing and attempting to correct for those. A common phrase among the founders of the sixth is that “data is not the plural of anecdote.” thoughtful, rigorous consideration and critique is an important foundational principle of the sixth republic, and is why education is one of the basic rights accorded our citizens. Not just our children; all citizens. Rigor and thoughtfulness are inherent capabilities of humans, but they must be nurtured, encouraged, taught.
I should speak of the basic rights of sixth republic citizens. They fall into two classes: positive rights and negative rights, where a “negative right” is a freedom from something, such as want. The rights we have so far enumerated include most of those identified by the founders of the first republic, although we have made certain omissions and clarifications, having seen the long-term outcomes of the originals. There are some that we believe to be relatively original to the sixth republic, although anthropology strongly suggests that they have existed in previous societies that did not leave extensive written records, at least not that were preserved over the ages.
As I’ve explained, we ensured the separation of three enormous forces in human events: governing, worshipping, and profiting. Seeing the effects of separation of the wealthy from the rest of us that destroyed the fourth republic, we followed Robeyn in instituting limitarianism. Simply put, there is a limit on the wealth any citizen, family, or subgroup can amass. And having seen the harm caused by dedication to (nearly worship of) violence in the second and fourth republics, we placed limits on the tools available to escalate violence. For much of the long-term enforcement of these principles, we rely on the elevation of education and the values we hope it instills in all citizens.
The founders of the first were right to suspect overreach by governing. We do as well, and also view overreach by the pious, the corporate, and the wealthy with equal disdain. Thus the sixth republic has extended the system of checks and balances instituted in the first to similar feedback and warning methods to all three forces. Profit is capped by limitarianism, and balanced by a limitation in scope that mirrors any increase in corporate overreach. Worship of the ancient type is fading among the real world people, but similar tendencies can arise on the basis of unexamined and undisputed assertions by sufficiently charismatic actors. To counter this we rely on education peppered with detailed examples, and insistence on demonstrations of principles, evidence that may be inspected, and corroboration (or replication) by independent individuals or groups. Initially it was thought that these would be functions of governing, but equivalent emergent behavior arose among the population instead.
We are also aware of the dangers of adopting the analytical frame, which seduces analytic minds into the belief that complexity, as of a living society, can be managed and even programmed. It’s the difference between complicated and complex. “Complicated” is like a computer. There are many parts and subsystems, but in the end it is all a deterministic machine. “Complex” is like an ecosystem; it’s not deterministic. It’s deeply analog. The nondeterministic portion of a society is citizens. That is why the sixth republic is governed by discussion at the neighborhood level. Every citizen’s responsibility and privilige is to engage in such discussion, and thus self-determine the society itself. The sixth republic is an emergent system.
My description makes the sixth republic sound ideal and without flaw or danger. This is not at all the real situation. The sixth republic is not a would-be globe-dominating empire like the fourth. We are a member of a community of nations, not all supportive of our directions or ideals. I will elaborate on this in an ensuing note.
