CommunityCOUNTS is an open source web platform which helps spark, collect, rank and compel discussion around an assortment of web content from text to video, including YouTube, MySpace, and Blip.tv. It started as a way for people to have a say in the YouTube Debates (NPR). Afterwards, it became the backbone of techPresident’s 10Questions, a video forum for the Presidential candidates (Wired), and most recently, it was used by a broad coalition to collect questions for the President (National Journal). Now we’re asking the candidates in the Massachusetts Senatorial election to use it as a means to answer the people’s questions over at: http://www.communitycounts.com/weeklydebate

You submit the questions, and you decide which ones get asked. It’s that simple. Candidates can’t claim, media bias because you choose the questions. Candidates can’t claim that they have a scheduling conflict because they can upload an answer at their convenience. Candidates can’t ignore the forum as only allowing sound bites because there is no limit to how long their answers can be. Candidates can’t dodge the questions because in the end, you vote on their replies, not on whether or not you agreed with them, but on whether or not they actually answered the question, and if enough people ask and vote on questions, candidates can’t dismiss this forum as irrelevant. So do you part. Sign this petition; tell your friends, and submit your question.