Posted on 10/30/2007 5:17:48 PM PDT by Tolerance Sucks Rocks
Many people with whom I talk about politics with are stunned by my constant assertions that America is not supposed to be a democracy. I credit public education for this. The fact is that most people are almost totally ignorant of history and completely brain-dead about the Constitution.
Our Founding Fathers did not give us a democracy, nor did they intend to. They were very well-educated men (especially by today's standards), and they knew, historically, democracies had never worked, even on the small scales when they had been attempted. They knew if democracy wouldn't work on the small scale of a city-state (like Athens), then it certainly wouldn't work on the large scale of 13 separate states in a federalist union.
What we were given was better: a representative republic.
Prior to the War of 1812, our republic was very egalitarian. The vote belonged almost solely to white males who owned property. In the years afterward, a movement began to expand the vote so we would be more "democratic." The franchise was expanded to include more white men, especially in the western "expansion" states. During Jackson's administration, people began talking about America being a "democracy." Jackson's disastrous economic policies led directly to America's first "Great Depression" in 1837 because Jackson was seeking more democracy for America, which resulted in economic ruin due to class warfare against those who had previously held power.
A deep study history and our Constitution leads to the logical conclusion that true democracy would be a complete disaster for our nation. True democracy is nothing more than legalized mob rule.
I cringe when I hear "majority rule." That's democracy. Our Constitution actually avoids majority rule in our system of government in order to protect the rights of the minority. If our Forefathers had intended to give us democracy, there would be no provisions for "super-majorities" in over-riding presidential vetoes or for passing Constitutional amendments. Otherwise, we would have a dictatorship of the majority, and that thought scares my socks off.
The Founders would be aghast at the existence of the 17th Amendment, an atrocity that guts the intent of the original Constitution that the House of Representatives directly represent the people, and that the Senate be the voice of the individual states. In 1913, that all changed when the election of Senators was taken away from the states and handed over to the people. That year also marked the beginning of the modern age of lobbyists. And corruption.
In the years following the passage of the 17th Amendment, the very concept of "states' rights" has become a joke. To the left, any mention of "states' rights" instantly marks one as a radical nut-case who probably harbors strong sympathies for the old Confederacy. It is beyond argument that power has flowed inexorably away from the local and state levels to the federal government ever since. I contend that in nearly every instance, that flow of power has been unconstitutional. The very existence of the Department of Education is a prime example.
States are constantly brow-beaten by Washington into following federal guidelines over everything imaginable. That or lose federal funding, another subject that raises my blood pressure. Why should Hoosiers only get a 65 return on every dollar they send to the feds for money that is spent here in Indiana?
What have we gotten over the last century for more "democracy?" More powerful and more intrusive government. More and higher taxes. Frankly, I'm insulted that anyone would think we're getting a decent return on this "investment" in democracy.
Instead of our idiotic fixation on "democracy," what we need is much more emphasis on liberty, on respect for the individual and his ability to create and spread prosperity; the need to foster and promote the concept that government is the cause of more problems than it solves. That most government social programs have been dismal failures which create an ever-greater number of dependents upon the government and its largesse (which is exactly what the left wants so it can attain, keep and extend political power).
Instead of constantly looking for Big Brother to bail us out of every single problem, we need not only more self-reliance, but also a strong local social fabric that relies on faith-based initiatives and private sources. They worked with far better efficiency than anything in history, especially since LBJ's "Great Society." Since 1965, we've spent $5 trillion to battle poverty, only to have more of it than ever. This is only one example of what "democracy" has given us.
Can anyone say "Constitutional representative government?"
Davis is a native of Indianapolis who served as a GOP Precinct Committeeman for 16 years and moved to Martinsville in 2000. He attended David Lipscomb College, where he majored in American history. He currently works as a writer, editor and freelance graphic artist.
PING!
I fear for our nation’s survival....this article expertly touches on a piece of where we have gone astray!
Instead of constantly looking for Big Brother to bail us out of every single problem, we need not only more self-reliance, but also a strong local social fabric that relies on faith-based initiatives and private sources. They worked with far better efficiency than anything in history, especially since LBJ’s “Great Society.” Since 1965, we’ve spent $5 trillion to battle poverty, only to have more of it than ever. This is only one example of what “democracy” has given us.
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Mob rule (”democracy”) has gone malignant since LBJ.
All well said, however, though I'm not a historian, wasn't part of the appeal of the 17th a different corruption?
Having worked at times (as a private citizen) "with" our state legislature on bills stemming from loss of federal monies if certain laws aren't adopted, I'm quite unhappy with this kind of manipulation.
Particularly when analysis sometimes shows the cost of implementation to be greater than the monies lost by refusal, but rarely do they figure that out for themselves -- though to be sure, in the pile-on file-it-and-vote-it-now free-for-all that passes for "in session" in this state, few of them have the time to think anything through.
So sometimes I do it for them.
“Instead of our idiotic fixation on “democracy,” what we need is much more emphasis on liberty, on respect for the individual and his ability to create and spread prosperity; the need to foster and promote the concept that government is the cause of more problems than it solves. That most government social programs have been dismal failures which create an ever-greater number of dependents upon the government and its largesse (which is exactly what the left wants so it can attain, keep and extend political power).
Instead of constantly looking for Big Brother to bail us out of every single problem, we need not only more self-reliance, but also a strong local social fabric that relies on faith-based initiatives and private sources.”
Yes...
Instead of our idiotic fixation on “democracy,” what we need is much more emphasis on liberty, on respect for the individual and his ability to create and spread prosperity; the need to foster and promote the concept that government is the cause of more problems than it solves. That most government social programs have been dismal failures which create an ever-greater number of dependents upon the government and its largesse.
Liberty Liberty Liberty!
So if the state legistlature appointed Senators, would that prevent someone like Ted Kennedy from being in office for all of the last 45 years?
Hmmmm. Maybe we should repeal that sucker.
There was some incidence of bribery in the appointment of Senators prior to the 17th. The first reported case of such was in 1872. The process of appointment was also corrupted by political parties and democratization.
Not necessarily, but he might have been recalled around 1969.
A school teacher was teaching her middle school classes about our Democracy until I asked her to recite the Pledge of Allegiance.She got to ..."and to the Republic for which it stands..." Then the light went on, at least for a while.
save for later
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