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Democracy | A Republic | Socialism | Fascism "A Democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of Government. It can only exist until the voters discover they can vote themselves largess out of the public treasury. From that moment on the majority always votes for the candidate promising the most benefits from the public treasury with the result that Democracy always collapses over a loose fiscal policy, always to be followed by a Dictatorship."
- Professor Alexander Fraser Tytler. DemocracyDemocracy was not looked fondly upon by the founding fathers and is not the defining characteristic of our country, yet we hear today's politicians constantly speak of our democracy, how great it is, and how we should share this system (often times forcibly) with the world. It often comes as a surprise to people that a democracy is a very different system than a republic, and the constant over-emphasis of democratic principles in modern America does not help this now common misunderstanding. The founders established a republic via the Constitution that included within it a limited democracy. The strict limitations imposed on this democracy within the republic restrained the dangers inherent to any democracy. Without these limitations, we could never have claimed to be a free country in the first place. The friendly and overall positive connotation that democracy enjoys today is a modern creation caused in part by the neglect of truly American principles. The republic created by the Constitution recognizes a citizen's inherent sovereignty, but a democracy recognizes only the will of the majority, often expressed through representation, as sovereign. Democracy in HistoryTo get the complete picture of what democracy meant in 1928, we can look at an excerpt from a manual issued by the US Army War Department. It accurately described democracy as: CITIZENSHIP Democracy: This is a clear and accurate definition of what a democracy is and what it will eventually result in if it is allowed to evolve unchecked. This is also how the founders viewed democracy and why they founded a republic that would be free from these inherent dangers while still allowing the people the ability to control government. Click Here for the Army's definition of a Republic. "A democracy [is] the only pure republic, but impracticable beyond the limits of a town."
- Thomas Jefferson, 1816 Democracy TodayOver the past century, the meaning of the term has been warped, biased, and generalized to the point that it is almost meaningless. If willing to oversimplify current definitions, we can say that democracy is a form (usually variation of a form) of government where the people express their will by electing representatives. There are also, however, many different types of democracy such as "direct democracy" and "representative democracy." Trying to find an absolute definition of simply "democracy" is not easily accomplished. The ambiguity of "democracy" can be seen if you look in today'sdictionaries or encyclopedias. Dictionary.com captures some of these modern interpretations in their definition: 1. Government by the people, exercised either directly or through elected representatives. So perhaps the term could now refer to any of these characteristics of government, but this is only because the word has become almost meaningless. The problem here is that these different definitions more accurately describe characteristics that are often found in countries claiming a democratic government. Today's definitions are misleading and innacurate, but it is exceedingly clear that the terms "democracy" and "republic" represent completely contrary ideals. To further understand this, investigate what a republic is by Clicking Here. Related Pages
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