[discuss] Should the 1net discussion be split into two (or more) lists?

[George Sadowsky]

To the 1net list discussants and to the 1net steering committee,

The large number of contributions to this list regarding representation issues convince me that enough people who contribute consider it to be really important.  Similarly, there have been a number of postings to this list regarding Internet governance issues without regard to representation that this seems important to a significant subgroup of us also.

These issues have some overlap, but may be better dealt with separately rather than in the current commingled manner.  So I propose considering to split this list into two lists:


1net-representation will be devoted to issues of representation that concern us.  It should be oriented toward the makeup of 1net and other groups that claim to focus on Internet governance issues.  It should focus on past, existing and future disputes regarding misrepresentation by and within stakeholder groups.  It should explore theories of political representation, participative democracy, and methods to measure balanced representation.  It should not concern itself with any technical issues, any administrative issues, or any issues of substance in Internet governance except to the extent that they concern themselves with representational components.


1-net solutions will be devoted to the issues in Internet governance that concern us.  It should be oriented to problem statements, descriptions of possible solutions, technical assessments, and implications of proposed modifications in the structure and distribution of responsibilities within the Internet administrative and technical ecosystem.  Arguments should be evidence-based to the extent possible.  Contributions should be made in an individual capacity, and discussions should be based upon the merit of ideas presented.  It should not concern itself with issues of representation on Internet governance groups, or political philosophy except to the extent that representational issues impact upon specific technical and administrative issues n an important way.  Other issues of representation should be sent to the 1net-representation list for discussion.


There may well be other ways to subdivide this list into components that promise to be able to make better progress in resolving the set of issues that bring us together here.  


When I first thought to suggest this, I thought of it as a way of using humor to highlight the wanderings of topics on the list and the seeming inability of the discussion to come to convergence and agree on anything.  Now, the more I think of it, perhaps the suggestion also deserves consideration as a serious one.

George
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