By Michael L. Hart
The original idea behind our representative republic was a reaction to the oppression of a far away government on the fundamental freedoms that our founders believed was inherent in all men. It was an idea that people should be free and without government authority intruding on their everyday lives. Our founding fathers were specific in defining what our fundamental rights are and they also developed a comprehensive system to ensure those rights would be safe from ambitious politicians and bureaucrats. They built a magnificent framework that empowered the people to choose their government and to get rid of it if it became contradictory to what the people desired. It has been a great system that has served us well. We have become the most prosperous nation on the planet in all of history.
But there's a problem with democracy. And it's a big one. Democracies and republics tend to commit suicide after a century or two. The United States is only 234 years old and we have already exceeded the record for the longest lasting democracy. Granted Rome had a version that lasted a little longer, but it wasn't the same type of democracy. Of course, no democracy throughout history has been identical, but the final disposition of them has been; they have all failed.
The founders sought to empower the people to choose how they would be governed. This was not a novel idea on their part, it is one of the foundations of any democracy. It is a good concept. If the people are the ones choosing the leaders, the leaders that are selected will represent the will of the people. No one has absolute authority to dictate and run the country as they see fit. They always have to answer to the voter at the end of their term. But herein lies the problem. While the will of the people is always noble and just, what about the will of the politician? What happens when politicians encourage a certain will of the people? Or use rhetoric and demagoguery to influence the will of the people? Or, worse, make promises to the people in order to influence that will? You've heard too many times the old quote about what happens when people realize they can vote themselves public money.
Once the power of the public has been usurped through manipulation and dishonesty, the original idea of the government no longer holds true. The government ceases to be a government for the people and instead becomes a government for the government. It begins to grow, becoming more and more expensive, and more and more intrusive. It justifies it's growth as needed by the public. In order for politicians to continue to receive votes more promises must be made. More programs and services are introduced, and more taxes and fees are required. Once put in place programs and services cannot be eliminated, no matter their value or cost, because the politicians use them to garner votes. They frame themselves as the provider of this critical service and their political opposition as the ones who wish harm on an innocent population.
Eventually politicians turn to dividing the people in order to maintain their power. They relentlessly drive the idea that one class of citizen is being manipulated dishonestly by another class. They make promises that they can put a stop to it and enact "social justice." While running for office, they promise to "spread the wealth." Poor people are told they are "less fortunate," and that people who are high achievers have merely won "life's lottery."
Soon protesting begins. People become convinced that they are owed something. With encouragement from politicians, people decide that businesses should not be allowed to make "too much money." The playing field can be leveled through more taxation and regulation. The revenue from those taxes can be shared with the less fortunate through social programs and projects awarded to the supporters of certain politicians.
Eventually the political class is entirely dependent on manipulating public opinion in order to influence the outcome of votes. The distinction between serving the will of the people and the people serving the will of the politician becomes blurred. Once government has grown and controls key points in society (IE healthcare, education), they are able to justify changes without the legislative process. The branch of government that is entrusted to enforce the laws begins to issue orders that have the same effect of being laws. Once that practice is accepted and common, the people are no longer required.
We are seeing signs of this deadly flaw today. At the time of this writing there are protesters in parks across America who demand social and economic justice. There are politicians who scold us daily on the evils of greed. We're told that we must accept greater regulation in order to ensure fairness. Regulation is imposed on the threat of environmental catastrophe. People who should be allowed to live their own lives the way they see fit are convinced that they are helpless and can only make their way with the governments help.
It is unlikely that this nation will fall anytime soon, or devolve into a socialist state (or worse, a dictatorship), but we must be vigilant to the dangers our young nation faces. We have already exceeded democracy's life expectancy. That is a testament to the spirit of the American people. But as time goes on, the spirit that has sustained us is slowly but surely altered to reflect what the politicians want us to believe. We are inundated daily by the bureaucracy and the media with perspectives designed to influence our own. Our education system has become a tool for the government to sow the seeds of complacency in our children. Our healthcare system is being converted to justify government regulation in our diets and to set tax policy on what's good or bad for us.
Despite all this, the reality is there isn't a problem with democracy. It's a great system designed to provide the citizens the sense that they are in control of their government. What is a problem, however, is the people we trust to govern our system become corrupted with power or have ideological agendas to make what they think is a better society, but not necessarily one the people want. They use democracy to bend the system to suit them, their ideologies, and their greed for power.
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