What Are Our Next Two Stacks?
(draft)
Key Takeaways
- Jerry's "brain" is a 27-year-old, 600,000-entry mind map used for sense-making and knowledge management
- The group explored concepts of "new stacks" for civilization/organizations and global renegotiation of social contracts
- Current events like the U.S. political situation were discussed as examples of institutional breakdown
- Ideas emerged around designing new governance/collaboration platforms and studying historical transitions
Topics
Jerry's Brain Concept
- 27-year-old mind map with ~600,000 entries
- Used for personal knowledge management and sense-making
- Handcrafted connections between ideas, no AI automation
- Accessible publicly at bra.in/jerry
- Potential for broader applications in collaborative knowledge-building
New Stacks for Civilization/Organizations
- Concept of "stacks" applied to societal/organizational structures
- Current Western "civilizational stack": democracy, capitalism, free press, rule of law
- Current "organizational stack": for-profit corps, non-profits, emerging alternative models
- Need to design new models resistant to corruption/takeover
- Examples: sociocracy, holocracy, wirearchy as emerging alternatives
Global Renegotiation of Social Contracts
- Observation of widespread social uprisings/unrest globally
- Involuntary renegotiation happening due to dissatisfaction with current systems
- Institutions failing to adapt, creating openings for radical change
- Need for new models of collaboration and decision-making at all scales
Current U.S. Political Situation
- Discussed as potential "coup" or institutional breakdown
- Concerns about dismantling of agencies like USAID without clear alternatives
- Lack of understanding of cascading effects on global health, security, etc.
- Parallels drawn to historical coups and regime changes
Designing New Governance/Collaboration Platforms
- Interest in platforms that allow large-scale democratic participation
- Examples: vTaiwan, Polis in Taiwan as potential models
- Need for systems resistant to takeover/corruption
- Importance of building trust and abundance rather than scarcity
Studying Historical Transitions
- Interest in examining post-WWII institutional design process
- Arab Spring discussed as case study in failed transitions
- Importance of having "platforms" ready for governance transitions