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March 11 2008
A number of countries that are usually considered to be democracies have fundamentally undemocratic components of their governmental systems.
For example, American voters don't really elect the President of The United States. The final choice is made by an appointed body called The Electoral College that has the power to overrule the choice made by the voters. Ironically, an American political party that calls itself itself "The Democrats" has set up a group of "super delegates" picked from the party elite that can ignore the candidate who got the most votes and select somebody else.
In Canada and in Britain, there are two houses of government. The first is the House of Commons which is elected directly by the people. The second house is called "The Senate" in Canada and "The House of Lords" in Britain. Unlike American senators who are elected, members of the Canadian Senate or of the British House of Lords are government appointees, usually pary stalwarts being put out to pasture. Until recently, members of The Lords received their seats by heredity. One had to be the son of a Lord to become a member. While members of The Senate or The Lords cannot kill legislation that has been passed by the Commons, they can delay approval for so long as to have the same effect, unless changes are made to their satisfaction.
All of these mechanisms were set up for the same reason, fear of the will of the people. After the American Revolution, only wealthy white land owners had the right to vote in the United States. Suffrage was not extended to all white men until the 1860s. Women didn't get to vote in America until the 1920s. African Americans of both genders didn't really have the chance to vote in the American South until the 1960s. Each time that voting rights were expanded, conservatives prophesied doom because these new voters would not have the good sense to use their ballots wisely. Expansion of the vote in Canada and in Britain met similar resistance from elite groups.
It's hard to deny that the people can make very bad choices of government. For example, Adolph Hitler was legally elected in Germany, though the Nazis used propaganda and goon squad tactics to make a travesty of the election. Basically, a nation cannot have it both ways. Either the people can elect a government that has full power to make laws or there is a elite group that can step in and overrule the government when it deems necessary. In my opinion, if a country opts for the second system, then it cannot truly call itself a democracy.
What do you think?
George
P.S. Visit my web site at www.checkmatefiction.com for free short stories.
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Posted by gjcondon on 2008-03-11 10:43:38 | Rating: | Views: 87
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