I have been working on Tiered Democratic Governance (TDG) for 24 years. There’s an old marketing axiom that if something doesn’t work, try something different. So I have been trying different things to get people’s attention on this new kind of democracy. Political internet forums, Google ads, Facebook ads, professional Facebook marketers, website changes, and even a TDG Comic Book.
I was participating in a Google+ political forum trying to promote the TDG without being too spammy. A fellow by the name of Richard Gillespie gave me an idea: “Write a novel about the people in this TDG of yours.”
This did not seem like a good idea to me at the time. I had never written a novel before. I had no intention of becoming a novel writer.
But in the next month, I realized that a TDG novel would be a different way to teach people about the TDG. Then a setting, characters, and a plot came to me. I got some assistance from a not-so-famous novelist, Mark Hunter, from Indiana. Mark worked on my first couple of drafts. Then my regular editor since 2008, Cherie Tyers from Alberta, took over. Thus “Diary of a Future Politician” was released in April 2020.
The setting is the small town of Riverbend, USA. Our main character is Len Pash, a lower-middle-class American, content with his factory job. But the factory closes, and Len is middle aged, without too many transferable job skills. He has a wife, two daughters, and a mortgage.
With more time than money, Len finds himself volunteering for a local TDG organization. Len helps build the first constitution. After that, Len is elected to the first executive committee. Working with some average people with open minds, Len starts seeing some TDG magic happening. He never used to be a person who liked meetings, but he looks forward to TDG meetings. He helps another sector of Riverbend establish its own TDG.
Despite his good service of the TDG, his neighborhood elects someone else. Len is disappointed. He will now be on the sidelines of this movement. He makes peace with this change in his life. The TDG had become part of him; he will miss the activity.
A few months later, the TDG finds another job for Len. Len is helping youth from the Tankosin Indian Reservation set up their own TDG. In effect, Len has become a TDG advisor, putting his previous TDG experience to good use. And he learns much about the Native American culture.
There will be many Americans like Len who will build this TDG.
Democratic change will not come from the politically connected. Nor from the wealthy. Nor from the well-educated. We really need to stop wishing and hoping these people will fix things.
If we average people want a new democracy, we will have to build it. Folk from all parts of American society. People like Len Pash. Sacrificing a little free time and working with our neighbors. That is the way the TDG has to be built.
By the people, for the people!
I invite you to read “Diary of a Future Politician.”
The most important lesson of this novel is that starting the TDG is really not that difficult. Average people can build this new democracy.
Published on Medium 2021
TDG Neighborhoods & Communities
Building a New Democracy is Work
