Hi Harold,

I subscribe to your normative expectation that we should "be" participative. But many libertarians will resist being told to engage with others with civility and tolerance, and that's a democratic challenge.

Also, most people persist with a reified rather than dynamic view of institutions, and don't accept that discourse shapes our world. Presented with the opportunity to join a discussion about improving a system, the response is "well, it is as it is."

IAP2 addresses a particular context: the relationship between an electorate and its government.

I agree that IAP2 is process-focussed. It also respects the institutions of representative democracy. But it does not suggest that participation stops when policy is set. Every IAP2 practitioner agrees that the participatory approach should be ongoing.