Democratic deliberation is like a theatre play on repeated showing. People choose their parts in the play by adopting one of the various arguments available. Once everyone is tired of seeing the same play (hearing the same arguments be met with the same counter arguments), we make a collective decision to not reenact the play (revisit its arguments) if for no other reason than sheer boredom. This decision is crystallized as policy. This estoppel arrangement can only be maintained, however, so long as we remember the play’s synopsis: If we forget how it went, we may need to return to its stage and play it out a few more times to remind ourselves of its acts.
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