winkosmosis
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Maui, Hawaii
When did we become a democracy?
I could have sworn that America was founded a REPUBLIC...
:eyes:
A republic is a representative democracy. Shouldn't being a republic mean you should support whatever the president and Congress do since they're elected officials? :dunno:
The whole "we're a republic not a democracy" thing is kind of a myth
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democracy
In political theory, democracy describes a small number of related forms of government and also a political philosophy. Even though there is no specific, universally accepted definition of 'democracy',[4] there are two principles that any definition of democracy includes. The first principle is that all citizens, not invested with the power to govern, have equal access to power and the second that all citizens enjoy legitimized freedoms and liberties. [5][6]
There are several varieties of democracy, some of which provide better representation and more freedoms for their citizens than others.[7][8] However, if any democracy is not carefully legislated to avoid an uneven distribution of political power with balances, such as the separation of powers, then a branch of the system of rule could accumulate power and become harmful to the democracy itself.[9][10][11] The "majority rule" is often described as a characteristic feature of democracy, but without responsible government it is possible for the rights of a minority to be abused by the "tyranny of the majority". An essential process in representative democracies are competitive elections, that are fair both substantively[12] and procedurally.[13] Furthermore, freedom of political expression, freedom of speech and freedom of the press are essential so that citizens are informed and able to vote in their personal interests.[14][15]