Lobbying

How does Knola resist influence from lobbying?

Lobbying is a strategy of special interest groups, and works by a simple formula: find powerful people, and influence them. In heirloom democracies, finding powerful people is easy. Elected officials are public, meaning they are highly visible and easily contacted.

They're also easily influenced, usually by monetary contributions to campaigns. Elections are largely decided by campaign financing, so candidates that refuse lobby money are doomed to be outspent. Only the most secure incumbents can survive in office without a relationship with lobbies.

Microdemocracy eliminates that leverage point. Consider, for instance, a municipal issue like proposed construction of a new bridge. There might be millions of potential participants, from which only a few hundred are randomly selected.

No one knows in advance which participants will be selected, so lobbyists won't be able to find them. Therefore the only possible strategy for special interests is to blanket the entire community with their message, which is massively more expensive, and thus worthwhile far less often. Furthermore, unlike elections, Knola deliberations happen continuously. So a one-time advertising blitz by special interests would not be effective.

Even if special interests could sow misinformation, the Knola process would detect it and correct for it. Before receiving the presentation, participants are surveyed for false beliefs. If decision managers detect that erroneous preconceptions might affect the outcome, they will strengthen the presentation to compensate.

Therefore the only successful strategy is to align oneself with the collective interest.