What is Democracy All About, Anyway?

Democracy is commonly equated with freedom itself. This is due to a general lack of understanding about what democracy really is. "...men have never experienced anything near genuine political democracy. What we have had are republics, and they have usually disintegrated into some form of benign, elective monarchy or oligarchy...a true democracy has never existed and never will exist; for it is against the natural order of things that the majority should govern the minority...The `people' have very little power and certainly in nearly all cases they don't rule.(Wirths)." Scott London further clarifies: The framers of the Constitution went to great lengths to establish the United States as a republic, not as a democracy -- as a government of laws, not of people. It is very significant, Wirths notes, that not only is the term "democracy" not mentioned anywhere in the U.S. Constitution, but the word does not appear in the constitutions of any of the fifty states. Given this insight into "democracy," we can see the term for the rhetorical device it really is. Listen to the Presidental speeches now and from years past, and hear them for the works of spin that they are. Democracy, at its core, is a recipe for mob rule, requiring a simple majority - or the illusion of a majority - to make critical decisions affecting the lives of all. Intelligent debate, or mitigating circumstances play no vital role in a decision's outcome - it doesn't have to. Just ask Sacco and Vanzetti. The American perception of democracy is a joke. Consider the fact that even majority opinion doesn't make things happen. The laws and policies of the nation are determined by a very small group of wealthy, priviliged few who attempt to control the minds of the many through the power of mass media and terror, and when necessary, enforce their decrees through paramilitary force. It's the real American way, and has been the case before, during, and after World War I, right up through today. The curbing of civil liberties during wartime has a long history in America, all the way back to the Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798, to wit: There were actually four separate laws making up what is commonly referred to as the "Alien and Sedition Acts": 1. The Alien Enemies Act authorized the president to imprison or deport any alien associated with any nation the United States was fighting in a "declared war," during a war time. 2. The Alien Act authorized the president to deport any alien considered dangerous, even in a peace time. 3. The Naturalization Act extended the duration of residence required for aliens to become citizens, nearly tripling it from five years to 14. 4. The Sedition Act made it a crime to publish "false, scandalous, and malicious writing" against government or government officials. With today's "Patriot Act", just as history proved of the Alien and Sedition Acts, the stated intent does not match the true intent of the laws. The Acts were ostensibly created to provide national security, but turned out to be tool of the political party in power, the Federalist party. Although not directly ruled upon by the High Court, The Sedition Act was seen as a direct violation of the First Amendment. In New York Times v. Sullivan, the Court declared "Although the Sedition Act was never tested in this Court, the attack upon its validity has carried the day in the court of history." 376 U.S. 254, 276 (1964). If there is an America in the future, it will not be proud of the years 2001-2006, which are proving to be closest America has come to destruction in its history, asthe threat eminates from within. The U.S. cannot justify its pattern of squelching dissenting minorities, as it usually uses the pretense of the national emergency of the moment to squelch any minority "it" disapproves of. For example, the current administration, with its Christian backers who coincidentally have a strong anti-gay bias, has seen fit to discharge homosexuals from the military for no other reason than their sexual orientation - even to the detriment of the stated "national security" agenda, as many have been Arabic translation experts. Oh, but who needs them when your declared "enemy" is a group of Islamic fundamentalists? America had better learn from its history if there is any hope for it - for us - to continue to exist.

Works Cited

London, Scott. Democracy - The Myth, The Reality by Wallace Wirths - A Book Review by Scott London. http://www.scottlondon.com/reviews/wirths.html. Jun 28,2005. Wirths, Wallace R. Democracy - The Myth, The Reality Media Specialists. Sussex, NJ: 1993 Wikipedia Alien and Sedition Acts June 28,2005 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alien_and_Sedition_Acts