Five Myths About Government, And How Busting Them Can Make Our Governments Better. March 9, 2023

Topic

While political philosophy have been debating for over 2500 years, they are still seeking  answers to basic questions.  How do governments justly get their authority?  Why do people have an obligation to obey governments?   These are not just academic questions.   Incorrect answers to these questions have piled up over the centuries, and many of them are still embedded in our governments today. These misconceptions are responsible for most of the problems we currently have with our governments, our politicians, and our democratic processes.

In this eye-opening and entertaining talk, Kevin Lyons will identify myths about government almost everyone believes.  He will challenge beliefs people have about democracy, voting, elections, politicians, authority and more. Using fascinating historical examples, Kevin will illustrate how governments can (and have) worked better when everyone knew better.   You will leave the talking with insight regarding how we can make governments serve us better today with new technology and processes, regardless of who is managing them.   You’ll hear about an exciting new city project in Incline Village with the explicit goal of creating the best local government in the country. If you’ve ever pondered government problems or solutions, this is a talk you will not want to miss.

Speaker: Kevin Lyons

Kevin Lyons is Co-Founder and Chief Scientist for Governance Sciences Group, and co-inventor of the FlashVote.  FlashVote is a survey system, currently used in about 30 states, that collects statistically valid community input in 48 hours for local government decision support. He has worked nationally and internationally on “better government” projects. He has formal training from the Business and Public Policy Ph.D. Program at UC Berkeley, and from the Chemical Engineering Ph.D. program at UCSB.   He is now applying his talents locally, helping Incline Village.

Having learned 29 years learning good governance from top practitioners and even Nobel prize winners, he is a sought after keynote speaker on government.  He has spoken at local government associations in California, Texas, Florida and Canada and at universities including TCU, Pepperdine and Harvard.