[EM] The structuring of power and the composition of norms by communicative assent

[Kristofer Munsterhjelm]

Michael Allan wrote:
> Juho Laatu wrote:
> 
>>> If private and public opinions differ, then which is the
>>> manipulated one?
>> If they deviate it is hard to imagine
>> that the private opinion would not be
>> the sincere one.
> 
> That's because you are thinking of individual opinion.  Consider:
> 
>   * private opinion informed by mass media, and likewise measured by
>     mass elections with a secret ballot
> 
>   * public opinion formed in mutual discussion, and likewise measured
>     by peer-to-peer voting with a public ballot
> 
> It makes a difference when people act socially (inter-subjectively)
> amongst themselves, rather than alone.  When they act alone, they are
> apt to be systematically manipulated as objects.  Alone they have
> subjective truth (personal sincerity), but together they have
> communicative reason (mutual understanding or consensus).

Could not these domains work together? To my knowledge, that's what 
happens now. People discuss politics and find out what they're going to 
vote. Any sort of improvement on the availability of discussion, as well 
as of information of representatives' actions will help that domain. 
Then, when the voters actually decide to vote, they have privacy. Their 
opinions may change based on what they hear or discuss, but at the end, 
it's a private decision who they'll give their vote to.