How each model solves the same problems
Instead of “democracy versus anarchism”, compare the concrete ways collective problems get solved.
| Question | + Model | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| How are decisions made? | Assemblies of landholders in each 'land'; annually elected judges (redjeven, grietmannen); an annual assembly of delegates of the lands at the Upstalsboom.Popular assembly | 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? | Compensation tariffs for wounds and killings, enforced by kin groups and judges; feud when compensation failed.Arbitration | Balanced briefing materials, trained neutral moderators and competing experts structured disagreement. | |
| How are public goods funded? | Dykes, sluices and drainage built and maintained by communities with obligations attached to land; monasteries assisted reclamation. | Privately funded; produced published results, media coverage and a peer-reviewed study. | |
| How is AI used? | None; a medieval polity. | No AI role. | |
| What are the main risks? | Capture of office by wealthy families, chieftain feuds, no enforcement power above the lands, and pressure from neighbouring princes. | Self-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.