Here is my idea on how politicians might use a distributed network to bring peace tO Iraq and elsewhere:

“Bounty Video” is a concept for using existing technology and a social network to bring peace to the streets of Iraq and potentially any other warfare environment.

In the case of Iraq, Bounty Video would involve the installation of tall poles at every street intersection. On top of the poles would be mounted webcams pointed in all directions. On top of the webcams would be a power supply consisting of a solar panel and solar rechargeable battery backup. Overhead, mounted on masts, high terrain, tethered ballons, satellites, or drone aircraft, would be multiple wireless access points.

All the video from all the intersections would be streamed live to the world over the internet. The authorities wishing to keep peace in Iraq would manage a web site where people could join the network of peace watchers and earn bounties for detecting targeted activities. For example, discovering someone burying an IED in the street might be rewarded with $10,000- far less than the value of even one lost life or limb. Similarly, all manner o bounties could be offered for any number of illicit activites.

It is hoped that many of the same “Million Eyes” that are currently trained on things like phony clicking web ads will turn their focus to furthering peace, and being paid well for their efforts. People around the world who want to pursue peace and don’t even care about the bounties will now have a way to participate directly.

While there will likely be many attacks on camera installations, each attack should generate video footage of the attackers, making it likely that the attackers will eventually be caught. Since there are no power or data lines to cut at street level, an attack will need to be more sophisticated than a pocket knife.

To prevent false alarms, network members would be fined out of future rewards for notifying authorities of activities that end up being false alarms. Over time the skills of the network members in discovering actual threats to the peace are likely to improve greatly as they move out on the learning curve.

Persistent on web video could allow enemies of peace to use the system as a lookout system for the authorities. In Iraq, the navigable skies are controlled by the authorities, so the webcams will likely not be positioned to show the approach of helicopters or other aircraft. On the ground maneuvers by the authorities in efforts to keep the peace could use a switching system that either cuts off the video as they approach enemies of peace or seamlessly substitutes a loop that disguises their approach. The authorities may wish to use multiple false approaches with video being cut off in order to exasperate the enemies of peace by repeatedly forcing them to prepare to defend themselves.

The cameras may be seen as infringing upon the civil liberties of the populace. It is proposed that the cameras only be focused on areas that are normally visible to ordinary police efforts. The Bounty Video system represents replacing the occassional eyes of a policeman, who is risking life and limb on the job, with the Million Eyes that are safe and secure in front of their monitors far away.

The system does have a large potential for abuse by the authorities. Some of the Million Eyes who helped the authorities to gain the peace may have to stay on the job to make sure the authorities do not abuse the peace. However, once the peace is established the populace should become the ones to keep their own peace, using the same system to keep the authorities in check and using political pressure to remove the counterintelligence measures.

An opportunity may exist to establish a profitable business around this concept. Any location requiring video surveilance could stream their video to the web. A marketplace could be set up to match buyers of surveillance eyes with sellers of surveillance eyes. Buyers would list the who, what, when, where, and how that they are looking for on the video and the bounty for spotting it. The site could show which cameras were being watched and which still needed watchers so there is not excess competition. Bounty hunting, either for peace or strictly for profit, could be the next new online game.

One of the main things politicians look for are new voters. Now we have the internet, a wide connection of individuals who use their computers to gain access to desired information. If politicians are smart, they will use the internet as a means to give their viewpoints to people, and get the votes of said people.

One neat idea would be to use an open-source approach to actually drafting legislation. Obviously the legislator’s office would have final say in what version of a given bill ultimately reaches the floor. But what harm could there be to, say, put up a wiki where constituents could propose and discuss alternate draftings of bills before they go to the floor? At the least it would be a way to get the constituents (or, god forbid, maybe even a legislator or two) to actually read and/or think about the text of legislation before it’s passed.

Thanks for pointing out PresRace to us. I’m interested in talking with you about your site. Would you contact me? Amanda.NewAssignment[At]gmail.com
-Amanda

I recently found a very interesting website:
http://alreadylinked.com/
There you can purchase ad space for your Blog etc.

Great suggestions - I can only hope that the politicians hear you and act on it. You’re right - there are so many simple things that can be done to open the communication between the elected official and their constituents. THey should follow the lead of many of the major consumer marketing companies and harness the information on the Internet.

I thought you might be interested in our site, www.PresRace.com. The site measures campaign effectivenes and strength as well as tracks many of the important issues that have surfaced recently. PresRace.com is powered by TrendIQ, (www.TrendIQ.com) and online business intelligence consulting firm that usually does this for Fortune 500 businesses. We are not affiliated with any political party or issue - we merely do it as a public service and because politics is fascinating!

Best Regards,
Jeaneen