Britain: Peoples Power - Trump's state visit to Britain put on hold - by Patrick Wintour

Donald Trump has told Theresa May in a phone call he does not want to go ahead with a state visit to Britain until the British public supports him coming
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The US president said he did not want to come if there were large-scale protests and his remarks in effect put the visit on hold for some time.

The call was made in recent weeks, according to a Downing Street adviser who was in the room. The statement surprised May, according to those present.

The conversation in part explains why there has been little public discussion about a visit.

Read more: Trump's state visit to Britain put on hold | US news | The Guardian

Internet: The future of the Internet: experts weigh in - power of governments deminishing

By 2025, the Internet will flow through our lives “like electricity,” according to experts polled on the future of the Internet. Mobile, wearable, and embedded computing will be linked in the so-called Internet of Things so that people and their environment can tap into artificial intelligence-enhanced cloud-based information storage and sharing, reports Pew Research Center. The report on “Digital Life in 2025” is from the U.S.-based think tank to mark the 25th anniversary of the creation of the World Wide Web by Sir Tim Berners-Lee, who wrote a paper on March 12, 1989 proposing an “information management” system. That paper evolved into framework for the web.

“With mobile technologies and information- sharing apps becoming ubiquitous, we can expect some significant improvement in the awareness of otherwise illiterate and ill-informed rural populations to opportunities missed out by manipulative and corrupt governments. Like the Arab Spring, we can expect more and more uprisings to take place as people become more informed and able to communicate their concerns.”

All 7-plus billion humans on this planet will sooner or later be 'connected' to each other and fixed destinations, via the Uber(not Inter)net. That can lead to the diminished power over people’s lives within nation-states. When every person on this planet can reach, and communicate two-way, with every other person on this planet, the power of nation- states to control every human inside its geographic boundaries may start to diminish.”

Read more: The future of the Internet: experts weigh in | Toronto Star

EU-Digest: POWER TO THE PEOPLE - The European Citizens’ Consultations 2009 (ECC 2009)

special EU-Digest report on Citizens Consultations leading up to the 2009 European elections

POWER TO THE PEOPLE - The European Citizens’ Consultations 2009 (ECC 2009)

In the run-up to the 2009 Euro-elections, the European Citizens’ Consultations 2009 (ECC 2009) will give citizens a voice in the debate over how to respond to the current economic and financial crisis by providing a platform for a pan-European dialogue on the future of Europe.

The ECC 2009 will give all European citizens an opportunity to join in the discussion on how the EU can shape our economic and social future in a globalized world, by taking part in an on-line debate on national websites launched on the 3rd of December in every EU member state – the first stage in a process which will culminate in a European Citizens’ Summit in May 2009.

The national websites will give everyone the chance to discuss and share their views on this crucial issue, and help develop recommendations for national and European policy-makers. Their ideas will be fed into national consultations which will be held in all 27 EU member states in March next year, involving some 1500 citizens from all walks of life. The outcome of all these deliberations will be handed over to policy-makers at the European Citizens’ Summit in May.

ECC 2009 is co-funded by the European Commission under its “Debate Europe” programme. Speaking at the launch, Commission Vice-President Margot Wallström said: “This project sets a new standard for citizen participation by working on the national and European levels, and by combining online and offline dialogue.” The European Citizens' Consultations are run by a consortium of more than 40 European partner organisations, led by the King Baudouin Foundation (KBF), and is co-funded by foundations including the KBF, Compagnia di San Paolo and the Robert Bosch Foundation, and funders at national level.

LET YOUR VOICE BE HEARD - FOR MORE INFORMATION ON HOW TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS DISCUSSION CLICK ON THIS LINK - ONCE YOU ARE ON THAT WEBSITE SELECT THE EU COUNTRY YOU ARE FROM AND LET YOUR VOICE BE HEARD

It is also possible to join the dedicated Facebook group “European Citizens’ Consultation 2009”.