“Virtual Country offers a bold, inspiring, and doable vision for our democracy... a stunning piece of work, and beautifully written.”
“Virtual Country....offers hope and a path forward at a time when both are in short supply, and I would encourage anyone to invest the minimal amount of time required to read the book cover-to-cover. They won’t be disappointed. ”
“Offering the actual methodology for designing change, as well as the tools to support it, Virtual Country is not just a roadmap, but a functional manifesto for a radical non-violent revolution.”
What is this book about?
A very special and significant moment for humankind is upon us. Yet, it is a moment that most people have not yet recognized. For the first time in our known human history, it is now possible for an unlimited number of people to gather in one place, online, for the purpose of expressing our collective voices and votes, on the very issues that affect us all.
By introducing a new type of voting, “advisory voting,” We the People can learn about and weigh-in on the important issues that affect us all, one issue at a time, based on fact-verified educational material, different ways to express a vote, and a way for popular issues to be disseminated effortlessly and securely. Advisory voting will enable the expression of public sentiment on any issue, transcend identity politics, bypass the 2-party system and bring us together, as we discover our common sense within our collective voice.
The very recent convergence of the Internet, social media and mobile devices makes this possible. Without changing or enacting a single law and without the need for a constitutional convention, a new national capability for registered voters can be created and launched right now - one that operates “virtually,” right alongside the goings-on of government. It can support our elected representatives with ongoing advisory input from registered voters, on a non-partisan, non-governmental, non-corporate, issue-by-issue basis, year-round.
What are our collective values, intentions, desires, and priorities? Do we really want change? If so, what do we want it to look like? How high a national priority is addressing climate change? income inequality? race relations? Do we believe that health care is a right or a privilege? How about guns – are there any limits to ownership that should be enacted? What about foreign wars? Where do we stand? Rule of law? How should we support it? What is it that we will and will not tolerate, at home and abroad? The answers to questions like these define us as a country, yet up until now, we have only been able to imagine what our real country looks like under the surface.
The Virtual Country strategy, completely nonpartisan by design, is about collective self-examination and self-discovery on a national scale that extends right down to the local. It identifies an historic opportunity to update the software of our democracy in a way that re-invites “We the People” to take our rightful place at the table of self-governance. Successfully implemented, it will transform politics as we know it, and will usher in a new era of civil, civic engagement and collective achievement, of which our Founding Fathers could have only dreamed.
About The Author
Richard Lang is a pioneer in the technology industry - founding CEO of Go-Video and co-inventor of the world’s first dual-deck VCR. His is the inventor of “burst technology,” which enabled true video-on-demand, and the founding CEO of Democrasoft, a developer of award-winning, web-based, decision-making tools for education, civic engagement, and groups with common interests..
Richard has been a guest on MSNBC’s Dylan Ratigan Show, and was featured by Good Magazine as a key influencer of “Future Learning.” He was a presenter at the World Cultural Forum in Hangzhou, China, speaking about online collaboration strategies. Virtual Country represents his vision for empowering citizens in the 21st century, and a road map for getting there.
“A blueprint for an issue-based, advisory voting system, which transcends the traditional allegiances of a two-party system, and allows every voice to be heard. Now, more than ever, an innovation like this is critical.”