Virtual Democracy (advance) is an advance in Call to Power II.
Gameplay[]
A Virtual Democracy is a highly advanced form of Government, in which citizens use technology to fulfill as many basic needs as they can, freeing people up to pursue higher level activities. Science and Growth are unsurpassed. Commerce is excellent. Production and the Military suffer from lack of attention and need.
Great Library entry[]
The democratic form of government evolved over the period of several millennia. Its first iterations manifested in the ancient Greek city-states, where the entire citizen body acted as the legislature. This form of democracy, called direct democracy, was possible due to the relatively small populations of the city-states. In modern times, representative and constitutional democracies flourished as nations grew and the sheer numbers of people made direct democracy impractical. Though these other forms of democracy worked well, some political thinkers lamented the lack a pure "rule of the people" in which one vote per citizen truly had meaning. Disillusionment with the Electoral College system and increased corruption in the United States government contributed to a growing desire to seek a pure democracy solution.
Technology provided the solution people were looking for. By combining the vast reach of the Internet with the latest digital encryption technology, governments could set up high-tech voting centers, with powerful computers tallying votes from across the country. Voters no longer punched holes in a card, they registered their vote through computer terminals. The citizenry could act as legislature, voting on proposed legislation posted on official government web sites. Local government, in particular, was revolutionized, as citizens who could hardly keep track of the machinations of their local city council could become the council themselves. The focus shifted from people voting for candidates to represent them in government to people becoming active members of the government. Although some virtual democracies suffered from voter apathy and conscientious non-participation, people had more power over the destiny of their country. Moreover, most importantly, they came as close as ever to true, pure democratic rule. Corporations lost their power to influence government through campaign contributions, congresspeople no longer misrepresented their constituencies and every human had the power to register their vote in a new and powerful way. Because the era of the politician ended, people finally took control of their political and economic destinies.