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"Knowledge will forever
govern ignorance, and a people who mean to be
their own governors, must arm themselves with the
power knowledge gives. A popular government
without popular information or the means of
acquiring it, is but a prologue to a farce or a
tragedy or perhaps both."
-
James
Madison (Fourth President of the United
States)
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To empower
citizens by providing a single, comprehensive,
easy-to-use repository of information on
individuals, organizations, and corporations
related to the government of the United States of
America.
To allow citizens to submit
intelligence about government-related issues,
while maintaining their anonymity. To allow
members of the government a chance to participate
in the process.
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In the United States, there
is a widening gap between a citizen's ability to
monitor his or her government and the government's
ability to monitor a citizen. Average citizens
have limited access to important government
records, while available information is often
illegible. Meanwhile, the government's eagerness
and means to oversee a citizen's personal activity
is rapidly increasing.
As the government
broadens internal surveillance, and collaborates
with private institutions to access data on the
public, it is crucial that we maintain a symmetry
of accountability. If we believe the United States
should be a government "of the people, by the
people, and for the people" it is of central
importance to provide citizens with the power to
oversee their government. At least as much effort
should be spent building tools to facilitate
citizens supervising their government as tools to
help the government monitor individuals.
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The Open Government
Information Awareness suite of software tools acts
as a framework for US citizens to construct and
analyze a comprehensive database on our
government. Modeled on recent government programs
designed to consolidate information on individuals
into massive databases, our system does the
opposite, allowing you to scrutinize those in
government. Citizens are able to explore data,
track events, find patterns, and build risk
profiles, all in an effort to encourage and
motivate action. We like to think of it as a
Citizen’s Intelligence Agency, giving people
similar tools and technologies to those held by
their government.
Central to GIA is its
extensible model of data: Everything in its system
is either an entity or a link -- a thing or a
relationship. This allows the system to grow in
any direction, and accommodate as-yet unimagined
institutions, organizations, or threats.
More
information is available here.*
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The best way to get started
is simply by clicking around. Try looking for your
elected representatives, judges in your area, or
even your employer. You'll see some of the types
of information available. Check back often, as the
system grows quickly.
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