Remember, democracy never lasts long. It soon wastes, exhausts, and murders itself. There never was a democracy yet that did not commit suicide. - Will Rogers
It might surprise you that we do not have a democracy. Even though the media keeps pounding it into us that Trump will take our democracy away, the accusation is false. This is a media talking point because in a democracy, everyone has a vote; even the non-citizens.
Let's have a closer look at our "democracy." An easy study is our city council, our county commission, or even the school board. In our democratic society, we can attend these meetings and make our voices heard. However, when it comes to voting, who votes? Why that would be our elected officials.
I have been to school board meetings in Lyons where the board members would retire to private chambers to decide an issue. So much for everyone has the right to vote.
Let's cut to the chase. We have state legislatures, we have the US Congress. Are we allowed to vote in these august bodies? Not only no, but Hell no! because that would constitute mayhem and disaster. Can you imagine running up to the Capital for every vote? No, we have our lives to live. We have representatives and senators to do that for us. Now we can see the light at the end of the tunnel.
In a democracy, we would be able to vote in all these different venues. As you can see this is not feasible. Our Founding Fathers hated democracy and Democrats in particular. Ron Elving of NPR thinks we have a Democratic Republic. 1
This is a quote from Elving's article:
Robert Draper of The New York Times published a piece on Republicans who say this in August. He cited a GOP candidate for the Arizona state legislature, Selina Bliss, saying: "We are not a democracy. Nowhere in the Constitution does it use the word 'democracy.' I think of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. That's not us."
But a democratic republic is us. Exactly. 2
Elving is wrong. I offer this:
I pledge allegiance to the flag and to the republic for which it stands...
Our government is a republic, not a democracy. The difference is unmistakable. In a democracy, everyone gets to vote. In a republic, only the elected representatives vote. I will relet on one thing. In a general or primary election, all the citizens get to vote. This is similar to a democracy. We do not have an unorganized mob pushing and shoving to intimidate voters to vote the way the mob wants them to vote. We all have a vote at the right time. However, we have a republic with elected individuals who ultimately decide the vote. We can let our representatives know how we want them to vote, but ultimately, the representatives vote as they think best.
Resources
1. Elving, Ron, Is America a democracy or a republic? Yes, it is, NPR GPB, September 10, 2022, https://www.npr.org/2022/09/10/1122089076/is-america-a-democracy-or-a-republic-yes-it-is
2. Ibid
3. DeMichele, Thomas, The United States is a Democracy (FACT), February 15, 2021, https://factmyth.com/factoids/the-united-states-of-america-is-a-democracy/
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