Iceland's 'Open-source Constitution' Handed In

Islandia map by Abraham Ortelius ca 1590

A committee of 25 put its proposals on-line. They the People responded with comments and suggestions.

The committee waded through the suggestions, responded, and then put forth the results of this unique diaolgue. They've now handed in the final draft to Iceland's parliament, called the Althingi - a name I can't even read without chuckling.

Iceland’s constitution was barely adapted from Denmark’s when the island nation gained independence from the Scandinavian kingdom in 1944.

"Since then, a holistic re-examination of the constitution has always been on the agenda, but always halted because of political infighting in the parliament," committee member Eirikur Bergmann, a political science professor at Iceland’s Bifroest Unioversity who also tweeted his way through the committee’s work, told AFP.

But after Iceland’s economic collapse in 2008, which triggered massive social movements, pressure mounted for a revamp of the constitution and for the process to be led by ordinary citizens, he said.

Now, a few months back, could Congress have taken the same approach to this manufactured debt crisis? Could it do this with other needed programs? Yes. It should be happening now to answer the many real crises we face.

The fact that they're still playing ping pong with the economy lets you know that they don't want anything approaching functionality in legislating. That would not allow for all the behind-the-curtains dirty dealing.

Go Iceland!