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?Every member a vote 'in Affairs of Moment'; captains and quartermasters elected and deposable; articles sworn by all members.Recall electionA statutory authority (UIDAI) under the central government sets rules; ministries decide where Aadhaar is required; Parliament legislated in 2016 and 2019.Digital identityA 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?Quartermaster discipline for small offences; juries for disputes over the articles; quarrels settled ashore by regulated duel.Grievance channels at UIDAI and service agencies; constitutional challenges in the Supreme Court, which ruled in 2017 and 2018.Balanced briefing materials, trained neutral moderators and competing experts structured disagreement.
How are public goods funded?Common fund paying fixed compensation for injuries; fixed shares of plunder agreed in advance.A universal, low-cost proof of identity used for welfare transfers, financial inclusion and public services.Privately funded; produced published results, media coverage and a peer-reviewed study.
How is AI used?None; an eighteenth-century practice.No AI in decision-making as such; automated biometric matching and deduplication decide authentication, and face authentication was added in 2018.No AI role.
What are the main risks?Dependence on violent predation, brutal punishments, exclusion of some groups, forced recruitment, and state suppression.CLM-0395Exclusion through authentication failures, data leaks, surveillance and profiling, weak independent oversight and function creep.CLM-0544Self-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.