Knowledge leads democracy.

• Author: Mireau, Shaunna
• Position: Feature on Democracy

I have voted in five elections this year: the Canadian Association of Law Libraries annual election in March, the Alberta Association of Library Technicians annual general meeting and election in May, a federal election, a municipal election, and finally, a provincial election.

I also (shame) didn't exercise my democratic choice a couple of times. I missed the annual Parent Council election meeting at my children's school--for fear of volunteering (shame again). I was otherwise engaged when the investment club I participate in decided what to do with surpluses.

When you consider all the aspects of your life that require you to make a choice that could be considered a vote, it makes sense to ensure that you are a democratically engaged citizen, not just exercising your vote, but also understanding issues that require and request your participation.

I believe that knowledge leads democracy. What I mean by that is

* no quest for democracy exists without knowledge of what democratic processes can accomplish;

* no true democracy exists without knowledge by voters of the consequences of their decisions; and

* democracy can be as simple as the knowledge that your opinion is important and acknowledged.

No quest for democracy exists without knowledge of what democratic processes can accomplish

How does technology impact a philosophically bothersome statement like the above? Most democratic processes require some form of communication. Communication in today's world is often found in media presentation (newspaper, radio, television, Internet, etc.). Access to media is global. The Internet is global. Barriers to communication are broken every minute. For example, CNN's international edition (www.cnn.com) offers alternate languages including Spanish, German, Korean, Arabic, Japanese, and Turkish.

If an individual in a non-democratic society can access information from a democratic society through technology, then knowledge of the possibilities of democracy becomes available.

Consider the recent election crisis in the Ukraine. From TIME Europe Magazine (www.time.com):

"Sunday, Nov. 28, 2004 It was both a symbol and a symptom of the revolution that rippled across Ukraine last week. On Thursday, as the presenter of state-controlled UT-1's main morning news program was updating viewers on the Central Electoral Commission's decision to declare Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych the winner of the country's Nov. 21 presidential vote, Natalya Dmitruk, the woman...