Is It Democratic To Elect A Dictator Or A Lunatic ?

[London2Baires]

So, you knock down Democracy.

Then you come up with Constitutional Democracy.
But you peek holes in it.

So what is next?
Any solution in sight?
You must have something.

A total solution maybe a little ambitious, pretty sure people have tried making utopias before and they didn't go so well. Can we settle for identifying specific problems with the current system and proposing solutions to incrementally improve things? Then again, applying them within the current solidified national and geo political power structures may be harder than we think ^^

 

[Chet]

Personally I suspect Thomas Jefferson was correct, "The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants."

A constitution, for a democracy or a republic is at its best a fine document produced and agreed to by a people. But people are and always will be people, it will not be perfect. Sadly the tendency is towards entropy.

 

[London2Baires]

Personally I suspect Thomas Jefferson was correct, "The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants."

A constitution, for a democracy or a republic is at its best a fine document produced and agreed to by a people. But people are and always will be people, it will not be perfect. Sadly the tendency is towards entropy.

but.... :

http://quantumj13.imascientist.org.uk/2013/06/27/can-entropy-be-reversed/

 

[Bajo_cero2]

Still can´t get over the first shock.
Like turning the whole world on its head.

But, if it is self destructive (the way you put it), why every politician on earth is rapping himself in its flag ?
Why is it sought after at all corners of the earth ?

Even it is true that democracy is the goverment of the mayority, judges balance the the will of the mass protecting individuals or minorities, ABC of check and balances theory.

 

[ajoknoblauch]

Even it is true that democracy is the goverment of the mayority, judges balance the the will of the mass protecting individuals or minorities, ABC of check and balances theory.

In theory, yes. In Argentina, well...

 

[Bajo_cero2]

In theory, yes. In Argentina, well...

Guess what, i do a living about that. You have 50.000 affordable lawyer. In the US, good luck!

 

[Joe]

An uneducated mob will invariably elect a dictator or a lunatic. The only hope is to strive for a more educated populace.

 

[Matt84]

Hypothetically speaking:

Some lunatic or dictator managed to manipulate his own people to elect him/her fair and square, would that process be still considered democratic?

Yes, very democratic indeed. This limitation of Democracy was discovered some 2500 years ago in Greece. That is why Rome perfected the Law and created a Res Publica to create a long term institution that could not be so easily destroyed by the whims of just one generation.
I believe the Americans had a similar idea some 230 years ago, but the guy who wrote its essential document, warned: " a Republic, If you can keep it"

 

[mc kenna]

Isn't that the reason why they included a 2nd amendment in our constitution??to protect the Republic

 

[London2Baires]

An uneducated mob will invariably elect a dictator or a lunatic. The only hope is to strive for a more educated populace.

This is an excellent point. I often think it deeply unfortunate that a significant majority of the voting public are happy to demand 'democratic rights' until they are blue in the face. Yet many of the same group seem oblivious to the 'democratic responsibilities' which come hand in hand with the rights which they so happily demand. One core responsibility is the one Joe alludes to; taking the time and putting in the effort to be informed about political reality and therefore making an informed decision while voting. Being geared merely by spoon fed rhetoric and political slogans and voting accordingly debases the democratic principle just as much, or possibly more, than those who abuse the process from the top down!

Bread and circus may be as old, or older, than democracy itself, but it's the people who have to eat the bread and go to the circus, if they refuse to play into those obvious and cheap tricks then they may stand a chance at creating a better reality for us all