Mauss Review 26 on Alternative Democracy and Alternative Economy

* Special Issue: Alterdémocratie, alteréconomie. Edited by Alain Caillé and with Immanuel Wallterstein, David Graeber et al . Revue du MAUSS n° 26

URL = https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25700786-revue-du-mauss-n-26---alterd-mocratie-alter-conomie

Includes the essay: Michel Bauwens, Rémi Sussan. Le peer to peer : nouvelle formation sociale, nouveau modèle civilisationnel

Discussion

Based on the reading notes by Michel Bauwens, 2006:

Presentation by Alain Caillé

The last issue of Revue du Mauss described a crisis of democracy, linked to the development of a 'consumerist' (" I want my rights"), rather than a participative, attitude. Pessimists see it as decline only, while optimists point to the emergence of a new participatory practice, but both sides see the problems with representative machinery. New forms are needed and this is the substance of this new issue dedicated to "alterdemocracy",but which is inevitable linked to a debate on new forms of 'altereconomics'.

- “Au bout du compte, le problème est toujours le même. L’esprit de la démocratie ne peut naître que dans les interstices et par l’enthousiasme. Mais il ne peut l’emporter et perdurer qu’en mettant en place des structures reproductibles. (p. 15)

Caillé insists that there is no horizontality without verticality, that if you limit too much the 'power over', you may end in powerlessness.

Concerning Participatory Democracy, Caillé insists that there are 2 sub-aims:

   - that of integration, i.e. aiming at involving greater numbers
   - that of deliberation, aiming to extend it beyond representatives.

Participative democracy 'transcends and includes' representative democracy.

It confers a new legitimacy:

   - “Toute décision semble devoir aujourd’hui avoir fait l’objet d’une consultation préalable".

An important issue will be if there can be “an excess of democracy”, that can destroy any form of efficacy. The example of the French Green Party is given. The ‘reality’ of some practices, such as the participative budgets, will also be scrutinized.

But what will happen to democracy if its economic basis collapses ? Is 'democratic degrowth' as advocated by Serge Latouche, at all possible ? (He has a seven-point program).

A priority to make such thinking of any realistic use, is to establish a consensus on what goods will be legitimate or not.

Box: The Seven-Point Democratic Degrowth Program of Serge Latouche

- 1) we need to return to the 1960/70 level of material production, in order to be compatible with the footprint of one planet

- 2) internalizing transport costs

- 3) re-localize activities

- 4) promotion of the production of relational goods

- 5) reduce energy usage by a factor of 4, the so-called Negawatt Scenario

- 6) penalize advertizing

- 7) adapt new agricultural progress on the lines of the proposals of the Confederation Paysanne