This Ted Talk by David Cameron reminded me of a crazy idea I submitted to Google 10 to the 100 a while back. Here was my submission.
What one sentence best describes your idea?
Let’s actually apply 21st century technology to democracy by continually polling the voting public on the top issues affecting their community, and gathering the best ideas for government to implement.
Describe your idea in more depth
A website wherein registered and authenticated citizens can state and debate issues, vote them up and down in priority, propose solutions/actions, and generally have a say in the thousands of government decisions that affect their lives.
Hierarchies of representation per issue or problem domain can be formed. Citizens can delegate their decisions in specific and fine-grains areas to knowledgeable and trusted representatives (education, energy, pet-control, etc..), or override default votes on an issue by issue basis. Citizens or groups of citizens become experts in certain areas and gain trust in that area and gather support, others default to voting the way their wife or husband does. 
Initially, elected officials use the output of the system as their mandate. Then it replaces municipal boards, school boards, city council meetings, etc. Eventually, politicians become obsolete and the government departments themselves present feasibility and impact analysis on competing solutions for voting on budget approval and acknowledgment of trade-offs as an issue moves through the pipeline.
Is this just as silly as letting the general public write an encyclopedia? Or is it just as powerful? Would it stall any progress, or provoke communities to rally together and move forward? Is it giving too much power to the unwashed masses, or is it giving them the responsibility the are capable of shouldering?
What problem or issue does your idea address?
We vote far too infrequently and far too coarsely. We vote on all issues at once by voting for a candidate that we agree with the most. Voting today is an expensive process. Make it cheap, easy and frequent. Remove the power of relatively few lobbyists/corporations from influencing the real decisions.
If your idea would become a reality, who would benefit the most and how?
The majority of people would benefit from having their voices heard of the range of topics they care about. People who elect a candidate using this system to gather feedback define their mandate would be empowered and become a willing participant in the democratic process. It would increase their sense of community and their trust in government.
What are the initial steps required to get this idea off the ground?
Build a prototype system and find political candidates (most likely a brand new breed of politician) willing to use it. Start at a municipal level to demonstrate value, gain community buy-in and work out issues.
Describe the optimal outcome should your idea be selected and successfully implemented. How would you measure it?
Communities will vote for individual solutions, not politicians to represent them. The government becomes reactive to the needs of the people. Politicians become moderators and advocates and subject matter experts is their areas of specialty, but do not make the final decisions.
Metrics include voter participation. Satisfaction with government. Belief that they have a say in what happens in their community, city, state, province, country and the world. Lower crime, higher productivity, higher quality of life.