"It's not democracy, It's mob rule," or It takes more than votes to build a nation
From the NY Times today comes a succinct analysis of the developing problem that America's citizens simply don't understand Constitutional Democracy:
T
San Francisco, CA
August 4th, 2010
8:35 pm
"The number of comments expressing dismay at the fact that a simple majority of whichever voters felt like showing up to the polls on a particular day and checking a "yes" or "no" box is not the final authority on questions of fundamental rights gives me a whole lot of concern for how well American citizens overall understand the structure of American government and the principles underpinning the Constitution that created it. That's not how it works. It's never worked that way. The US was carefully crafted specifically *not* to work that way. Our system of government exists and has always existed upon a structural foundation of multiple, overlapping checks and balances (between the three federal branches, between House and Senate, between fed and state, etc.). There is nothing to check or balance mob rule (and that's what the "we should all get to vote on it!" system is--it's not democracy, it's mob rule); it's absolutely antithetical to all of the values on which our system of government is based, and I'm concerned that what seems like a large number of people living in this country appear to be totally unaware of that fact."
And, no, I'm not T. How I wish I had written this!
T
San Francisco, CA
August 4th, 2010
8:35 pm
"The number of comments expressing dismay at the fact that a simple majority of whichever voters felt like showing up to the polls on a particular day and checking a "yes" or "no" box is not the final authority on questions of fundamental rights gives me a whole lot of concern for how well American citizens overall understand the structure of American government and the principles underpinning the Constitution that created it. That's not how it works. It's never worked that way. The US was carefully crafted specifically *not* to work that way. Our system of government exists and has always existed upon a structural foundation of multiple, overlapping checks and balances (between the three federal branches, between House and Senate, between fed and state, etc.). There is nothing to check or balance mob rule (and that's what the "we should all get to vote on it!" system is--it's not democracy, it's mob rule); it's absolutely antithetical to all of the values on which our system of government is based, and I'm concerned that what seems like a large number of people living in this country appear to be totally unaware of that fact."
And, no, I'm not T. How I wish I had written this!
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