The newest government in the world was designed with help from comments on the internet. God help us all.After Iceland’s economic collapse in 2008, the island nation decided it was time to write a new constitution, this one not based on its parent country of Denmark but rather made from the original ideas of its citizens. Iceland’s small population of 320,000 elected 25 assembly members from 522 ordinary candidates (including lawyers, political science professors, journalists, and many other professions), who in turn opened their process up to the public in an unprecedented fashion. The Constitutional Council was highly active on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and Flickr, where they solicited comments and suggestions for the new government. On 29 July 2011, Iceland's parliament officially received the new constitution, comprised of 114 articles divided into 9 chapters. Set to be reviewed, and then put before vote for ratification by 1 October 2011, the internet-assisted document marks a possible paradigm shift in governing. In the 21st Century, we are writing our constitutions with social media. The future is a crazy place.
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