Do we even have a democracy?
The Greece saw the aristocracy, the rule of an elite, as a positive contrast to the democracy, because they saw democracy as nothing more than the rule of a mindless mob.
Later on the meaning changed and democracy was viewed upon as the rule of the people. In the positive meaning of having everyone share a piece of the political power cake, as opposed to a minority hoarding all the power.
But what do we have today? Is it a democracy or is that just what we would like to believe? And are we supposed to view it as worth keeping around or not?
The children in school aren't taught to become critical thinkers, they do not learn about their country's laws and they only scratch the very surface of how politics work in their country.
People are growing increasingly apathetic towards politics. Is this because the people feel that they are being excluded from political choices? That they have no impact with their vote and their voice?
Who even knows what they are voting for when they go to vote? What the political party or the representative they vote even stand for?
Did anyone here ever make a political change? Or had the feeling that they had any sort of meaningful partake in the democracy that they are a part of?
>>507818
>The Greece saw the aristocracy, the rule of an elite, as a positive contrast to the democracy, because they saw democracy as nothing more than the rule of a mindless mob.
t. Greek aristocracy
>The Greece saw the aristocracy, the rule of an elite, as a positive contrast to the democracy, because they saw democracy as nothing more than the rule of a mindless mob.
t. Critias
Seeing as how nearly every American citizen over 18 has the power to vote for their congressman, representative, the president, all local government, and the power to recall those people if the citizens feel they are not being represented then yes it is a democracy.
Yes.
BUT
Only under conditions of:
>limited territory
>limited population
>peaceful neighbors
>homogeneous culture
>relatively egalitarian society
>constant participation on the part of the citizenry
>>507818
Aristocracy and Oligarchy is pretty good for everyone, specially for science and art.
Monarchy is good of the bad.
Democracy goes to the trash.
Never quite understood the difference between dictatorship and a Monarchy? Surely a monarchy falls under dictatorship?
>>508059
Dictatorships happen in republics.
>>508059
A monarchy is a government form in which full political power is handed on within the same bloodline. The king or queen of a monarchy is therefore always within the family of the monarchs. That's all that a monarchy means.
A monarchy is not necessarily a dictatorship, but a dictatorship can take on many forms. As such, a monarchy can be a dictatorship, but doesn't have to be a monarchy. A dictatorship could as well take on the guise of a democracy or other government forms.
A dictatorship is present when the people do not believe in the legitimacy of the rulership and are forced to live under a government that they do not see as rightful.
>>508173
>A monarchy is a government form in which full political power is handed on within the same bloodline. The king or queen of a monarchy is therefore always within the family of the monarchs
>what is an elective monarchy
>>508173
That's not necessarily true, Hitler's Germany was a dictatorship but for the most part had the consent of the people
>>508180
Most forms of monarchy have aspects of both hereditary and elective in them.
An elective monarchy usually restricts the voting of the monarch to members of the family...so there is your answer.
>tfw most so called democracies are actually oligarchies
Nothing wrong with liberal democracy.
>>507914
For me it boils down to having a justification of the state in the first place. What is needed for a state to be legitimate for the people in it. So how well the state is run isn't relevant for me at all. A state is suppose to be by the people, for the people, in some sense. And democracy, whatever variant of it you can think of, is the only system that manages to justify the states existence.
If you want to argue that the state is suppose to be built on, say, utilitarian principles then I can see your point why you'd prefer something different (even if I on the utilitarian justification for, say, fascism would argue that institutions such as schooling and healthcare is much more important than how the state is run).
>>508208
Except for idiots who don't elect liberal parties.
>>508173
>A dictatorship is present when the people do not believe in the legitimacy
Isn't it more correct to say it doesn't *need* the people to believe in its legitimacy?
>>508222
Freedom ain't free
>>508225
I guess so.
>>508208
Except that private property is theft.
Aristocracy is top tier, yes, but it's as utopic as communism.
The same goes for meritocracy.
They are amazing, but they are so difficult to achieve and even more difficult to sustain.
