Democracy

firth4eva · Post by **firth4eva** » Mon Mar 07, 2011 4:56 pm

Doesn't really seem like a good idea to me. It undermines the concept of expertise and means that stupid people have just as much say as smart people. Fascism seems a much better idea to me. Thoughts?

Phatscotty · Post by **Phatscotty** » Mon Mar 07, 2011 5:03 pm

firth4eva wrote:Doesn't really seem like a good idea to me. It undermines the concept of expertise and means that stupid people have just as much say as smart people. Fascism seems a much better idea to me. Thoughts?

Democratic Republic

radiojake · Post by **radiojake** » Mon Mar 07, 2011 5:12 pm

Democracy is hard to positively define - For most of history is has been used in a binary opposition against what it is not, rather than what it is.

The Greeks brought in democracy as an opposition to autocracy

The French Enlightenment brought in democracy as an opposition to monarcy

During the Cold War it become the all mighty antithesis to communism

These days it seems to be used in binary opposition to the theocratic regimes of the Middle East

The word gets thrown around so much and has so many different meanings to different people - How would you even positively define it?

Phatscotty · Post by **Phatscotty** » Mon Mar 07, 2011 7:24 pm

Democracies swallow themselves as soon as the voting populace makes voting the treasury a priority.

notyou2 · Post by **notyou2** » Mon Mar 07, 2011 7:34 pm

Don't choke on that greenback Scotty.

PLAYER57832 · Post by **PLAYER57832** » Mon Mar 07, 2011 7:36 pm

firth4eva wrote:Doesn't really seem like a good idea to me. It undermines the concept of expertise and means that stupid people have just as much say as smart people. Fascism seems a much better idea to me. Thoughts?

Everybody loves a dictator or monarche, as long as they are friendly. Its those pesky people who insist on disagreeing that cause all the trouble.

saxitoxin · Post by **saxitoxin** » Mon Mar 07, 2011 7:48 pm

There hasn't been a democracy for more than 2,000 years.

The Story of Your Enslavement -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xbp6umQT58A

Phatscotty · Post by **Phatscotty** » Mon Mar 07, 2011 8:30 pm

notyou2 wrote:Don't choke on that greenback Scotty.

No worries. I guarantee that will never happen.

notyou2 · Post by **notyou2** » Mon Mar 07, 2011 9:04 pm

[quote="saxitoxin"]There hasn't been a democracy for more than 2,000 years.

The Story of Your Enslavement -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xbp6umQT58A[/quote

So what do you think we should do Dr Saxi?

Army of GOD · Post by **Army of GOD** » Mon Mar 07, 2011 10:45 pm

Saxitoxin isn't a doctor.

He's a Messiah.

TA1LGUNN3R · Post by **TA1LGUNN3R** » Tue Mar 08, 2011 4:54 am

firth4eva wrote:Doesn't really seem like a good idea to me. It undermines the concept of expertise and means that stupid people have just as much say as smart people. Fascism seems a much better idea to me. Thoughts?

Why shouldn't they? Or rather, why should smart people have more say than stupid people?

saxitoxin wrote:There hasn't been a democracy for more than 2,000 years.

The Story of Your Enslavement -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xbp6umQT58A

Jesus Christ...that clip where the cop shot that guy being pinned down was brutal. Also, if I'm gonna watch a video with a heavy theme like human slavery to a system over the course of our history, I'd appreciate better (or at least less-patronizing) clips demonstrating such. Explaining "mafia" enforcement and then showing a clip of a video game scene of a mafia collection and subsequent shoot-out both lessens the impact and makes me think the creators believe I'm an idiot. Dunno, maybe it's just me.

-TG

Barramundi Dan · Post by **Barramundi Dan** » Tue Mar 08, 2011 5:05 am

Democracy only works if the population has equal access to a high standard of education. Otherwise the less educated will have their votes bought by the campaign with the most money and the best spin doctors.

PLAYER57832 · Post by **PLAYER57832** » Tue Mar 08, 2011 8:05 am

saxitoxin wrote:There hasn't been a democracy for more than 2,000 years.

The Story of Your Enslavement -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xbp6umQT58A

1984 is much closer to the truth.

Army of GOD · Post by **Army of GOD** » Tue Mar 08, 2011 11:27 am

TA1LGUNN3R wrote:
firth4eva wrote:Doesn't really seem like a good idea to me. It undermines the concept of expertise and means that stupid people have just as much say as smart people. Fascism seems a much better idea to me. Thoughts?
Why shouldn't they? Or rather, why should smart people have more say than stupid people?

saxitoxin wrote:There hasn't been a democracy for more than 2,000 years.

The Story of Your Enslavement -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xbp6umQT58A
Jesus Christ...that clip where the cop shot that guy being pinned down was brutal. Also, if I'm gonna watch a video with a heavy theme like human slavery to a system over the course of our history, I'd appreciate better (or at least less-patronizing) clips demonstrating such. Explaining "mafia" enforcement and then showing a clip of a video game scene of a mafia collection and subsequent shoot-out both lessens the impact and makes me think the creators believe I'm an idiot. Dunno, maybe it's just me.

-TG

The narrator was terrible, too. Cool video, but it could've been produced a little better.

notyou2 · Post by **notyou2** » Tue Mar 08, 2011 12:43 pm

It's this sort of thing that makes people "go postal".

This is on your conscience Dr Saxi.

john9blue · Post by **john9blue** » Tue Mar 08, 2011 8:46 pm

I like how this thread is now about Saxi's video.

saxitoxin · Post by **saxitoxin** » Tue Mar 08, 2011 9:00 pm

notyou2 wrote: So what do you think we should do Dr Saxi?

Don't worry, I'm already taking care of it.

notyou2 · Post by **notyou2** » Tue Mar 08, 2011 9:07 pm

saxitoxin wrote:
notyou2 wrote: So what do you think we should do Dr Saxi?
Don't worry, I'm already taking care of it.

Whew.

Thanks.

Umm, does it involve East German women named Olga and Beulah?

Phatscotty · Post by **Phatscotty** » Thu Mar 10, 2011 12:03 am

saxitoxin wrote:There hasn't been a democracy for more than 2,000 years.

The Story of Your Enslavement -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xbp6umQT58A

The weirdest video I have ever seen.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=El0R-4ImKXk

targetman377 · Post by **targetman377** » Thu Mar 10, 2011 12:45 am

democracy is the worst form of government there is no protection of any minorities in the group also nothing would get done! a true republic is the way to go!

thegreekdog · Post by **thegreekdog** » Thu Mar 10, 2011 6:07 pm

Winston Churchill wrote:It has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried.

PLAYER57832 · Post by **PLAYER57832** » Thu Mar 10, 2011 6:10 pm

Phatscotty wrote:Democracies swallow themselves as soon as the voting populace makes voting the treasury a priority.

That's what you keep advocating, though.

targetman377 · Post by **targetman377** » Thu Mar 10, 2011 6:14 pm

thegreekdog wrote:
Winston Churchill wrote:It has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried.

It is only the best form because it has never been tried. in that i mean true democracy! if it has never been tried people cannot see how bad it truly is.

also Winston Churchill was trying to please the masses! he might not have believed it. he just said that to become more liked! i think he was a smart man and he may have saw it that way

BigBallinStalin · Post by **BigBallinStalin** » Mon Mar 14, 2011 4:42 pm

TA1LGUNN3R wrote:
firth4eva wrote:Doesn't really seem like a good idea to me. It undermines the concept of expertise and means that stupid people have just as much say as smart people. Fascism seems a much better idea to me. Thoughts?
Why shouldn't they? Or rather, why should smart people have more say than stupid people?

saxitoxin wrote:There hasn't been a democracy for more than 2,000 years.

The Story of Your Enslavement -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xbp6umQT58A
Jesus Christ...that clip where the cop shot that guy being pinned down was brutal. Also, if I'm gonna watch a video with a heavy theme like human slavery to a system over the course of our history, I'd appreciate better (or at least less-patronizing) clips demonstrating such. Explaining "mafia" enforcement and then showing a clip of a video game scene of a mafia collection and subsequent shoot-out both lessens the impact and makes me think the creators believe I'm an idiot. Dunno, maybe it's just me.

-TG

You might enjoy Michael Munger's lecture called "Why Democracy is Overrated"
http://michael-munger-why-democracy-is- ... et/_/91061

An interesting and relevant article he wrote would be "Democracy is a Means, Not an End "
http://www.econlib.org/library/Columns/ ... cracy.html

BigBallinStalin · Post by **BigBallinStalin** » Mon Mar 14, 2011 4:56 pm

Michael Munger's "Democracy is a Means, Not an End"

My thesis is that "democracy" without the safeguards of constitutional liberalism is both tyrannical and incoherent, the worst system imaginable.

...

Elections are a check on tyranny, not a conjuring of the will of the people.

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