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Email UpdatesOn a recent thread on Reddit commenters ridicule a Highschool girl who said “I don’t believe in democracy because I am a Conservative, not a democrat.”
They impugn her as an ignorant fool who is indicative of the stupidity of the current generation, when in fact she is smarter than most of the fools on reddit.
The United States is not a democracy, it is a Constitutional Republic. The founders of this country were not in favor of democracy.
“Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. Liberty is a well-armed lamb contesting the vote!” Franklin, Benjamin
“A democracy is nothing more than mob rule, where fifty-one percent of the people may take away the rights of the other forty-nine.” - Thomas Jefferson
“Our real disease - which is democracy.” - Alexander Hamilton
“Remember, democracy never lasts long. It soon wastes, exhausts, and murders itself. There never was a democracy yet that did not commit suicide.” - John Adams
Democracy is as large a threat to liberty as any dictatorship. Our problem today, is that most people don’t care what form of government we have and won’t take the time to understand it. They just want what they want and expect the government to give it to them. If the constitution or the rule of law gets in the way, few protest, and our freedom slips away because of fear, greed, ignorance, and laziness.
DUI law is a perfect example of this. Few people understand this, but DUI law may be the single largest threat to our constitutional liberty. It is a clear case of the end justifying the means and it is almost universally accepted, the 4th and 5th amendments be damned.
Absolutely. A lot of it is just plain ignorance and propaganda. Husband and I just watched this http://www.jbs.org/node/8022 which was a great reminder–ordering the dvd for the kids to watch–want them to learn early and learn it well.
Comment by Heather Young May 16th, 2008 @ 8:25 am
So, why is it that the term “Democracy” is so often used to describe our government? Have we lost touch with the principles that this country was founded on? Or has our government become something that it was never intended to be?
It seems to me that our politicians and leaders have lost touch with the concept of representation, and in doing so, have alienated the American people from their government. I think we have wandered away from a government that serves the people to one that seeks to rule the people. And, while we may be free from the “tyranny of the majority” (of voters), more and more our government is abusing its power to become a tyrannical body in itself - even though it is one elected by the people. Meanwhile, we the people become increasingly spinless and allow the government to control us rather than the other way around.
Comment by msucase May 19th, 2008 @ 7:30 am
I agree with your post, but Franklin never said that. In fact the phrase was probably coined in the 90s!
http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Benjamin_Franklin
Comment by Ed May 20th, 2008 @ 10:07 am
Steve,
Not to get off subject, but your post reminded me of some comments made to me by Republicans and people who consider themselves conservatives. In their reactions to the recent California Supreme court decision that overturned the gay marriage ban, I heard many complaints that the courts were not following the wishes of the voters.
I found it quite surprising that any student of law or government, especially a conservative, would think a judge’s decision should be based on public opinion, or a democratic vote. The concept of mob rule seems perfectly acceptable to some people as long as they believe it is their mob that will always rule.
J
Comment by J May 24th, 2008 @ 10:10 pm
[…] know about you, but I am ready to kick these scoundrels out. These people think we live in a democracy. We don’t, we live in a constitutional republic. Or at least we use to. We could elect McCain and […]
Pingback by Convention Rant « Freedomwarrier’s Weblog June 5th, 2008 @ 10:07 am
[…] know about you, but I am ready to kick these scoundrels out. These people think we live in a democracy. We don’t, we live in a constitutional republic. Or at least we use to. We could elect McCain and […]
Pingback by Convention Rant « Freedomwarrior’s Weblog June 6th, 2008 @ 6:09 am