We all know how his Facebook page (where he’s my friend), twitter posts, youtube videos and coordinated email-mobilizing got him elected. The same tools have begun making government more instantly available to the people–the people it is supposed to serve. Hail to the chief for that, at least.
This article by Anil Dash in the Huffpo calls the range of electronic access points that have been given to the governed over the last several months the “Most interesting start-up of the year.” Although nowhere near as popular as social networking sites, one can imagine sites like USAspending.gov , recovery.gov, and data.gov becoming one day soon as well-trafficked as post office lobbies (remember those?) were in the 1960s.
Especially exciting to me is how inexpensive and accountable government becomes when its communication goes into the cloud. And Dash claims the same radical improvement that occurred in private sector businesses will be possible. Indeed, he claims that the sites that make up this “government 2.0” will be filter and fiber to the body politic. These tools are non-partisan, too, good for us whether we’re liberal, conservative, moderate or apolitical. The new tools are
…useful to almost anybody, regardless of affiliation. If you support this administration’s goals, then the fact that these sites make the government more effective and efficient is something to celebrate. And if you don’t, then the fact that these sites make the administration radically more transparent and accountable than any past web efforts by the government should be a powerful opportunity. Better government? There’s an app for that. (emphasis added)
photo from Richard Ricelli’s ideasincirculation
The Wikiness 
Leave a Reply