Polity Atlas

How each model solves the same problems

Instead of “democracy versus anarchism”, compare the concrete ways collective problems get solved.

Question✕✕✕
How are decisions made?Company councils elected by workers' assemblies, general industry councils, an Economic Council of Catalonia, and in Aragon a Defence Council.Grand Council of 50 chiefs chosen by clan mothers; questions pass between groups of nations, each seeking unanimity, with the Onondaga Firekeepers confirming or resolving disagreement.A stratified random sample of 523 voters deliberated in moderated groups and plenaries and answered questionnaires before and after; no decisions were taken.Sortition / citizens' assembly
How are conflicts resolved?Disputes among unions, parties and the Generalitat were settled politically and, in May 1937 in Barcelona, by armed clashes.The Confederacy describes the Grand Council as resolving disputes among the nations and planning for the welfare of all the people.Balanced briefing materials, trained neutral moderators and competing experts structured disagreement.
How are public goods funded?Collectivised firms ran under union and council management; the Generalitat lowered the working week to 40 hours and ordered a 15% rise for low salaries.UnknownPrivately funded; produced published results, media coverage and a peer-reviewed study.
How is AI used?No documented AI role.No documented AI role.No AI role.
What are the main risks?Civil war and shortages; conflict between unions and parties; coercion in some rural collectives; loss of worker management through state intervention after 1937.CLM-0159Operates alongside US and Canadian governments, which limits its practical jurisdiction; its rule of unanimity within and between blocs requires broad agreement.CLM-0117CLM-0118Self-selection into attendance; artificial setting; analysis by the method's designers; no institutional uptake.

This illustrates differences in design; it is not a universal claim about outcomes. Each cell links to mechanisms and the claims behind them.