The adoption of digital signatures for petitions will fundamentally change the way that Swiss citizens engage with their government, launching a new era in which the power of citizens to use the initiative and referendum is just a click away. Advances in cybersecurity will ensure the secrecy and integrity of digital signatures.

As the federal government has become more autocratic and dismissive of citizen petitions, interest in the petition process has waned. The unprecedented levels of debt incurred by the federal government in recent years have triggered renewed interest in direct democracy. Citizen groups are now challenging the failure of Congress to record and count these state petitions.

We should expect our European allies in NATO to pursue their own interests and protect their sovereignty. They may decide that NATO is no longer in their interests and end the alliance. They will certainly not participate in a NATO alliance in which the United States launches war without warning or consultation. If the European countries decide to continue the alliance, it will require a fundamental change to the organization’s governing structure.