Democratic by design

"Co-ops. Credit unions. Communal work space. These are all familiar concepts to most Americans, and alive and well throughout the country, yet their potential to challenge the status quo of corporate and government bloat is rarely discussed. Such ventures have long appealed to the "practical dreamers" -- people who want to promote a vision of big social change, while also accomplishing something concrete. At last, their moment has arrived in the ascendance of the so-called "sharing economy." While the term refers largely to profit-making entities like car- and rent-sharing sites, it springs…