[Peace-discuss] Pure democracy

[illyes at uiuc.edu]

You're right, Robert. Pure democracy has been know since classical times in Greece to easily devolve into a tyranny of the majority. Without some protection of individual rights, such as we have, it is a poison pill. A dictatorship of the proletariat is certain to show up in a pure democracy sooner or later. But immediately after this, even democracy dies, because sociopaths seize the government and claim to be operating in the name of the people while actually not doing so.

Karen is right that common sense may eventually prevail, but common sense also dictates that rather than set up pure democracy, one should set up a republic, something that is much more stable. There are lots of kinds of republics, some better than others. Our constitution guarantees each state a republican form of government, which I assume means that if a state devolved into a dictatorship of the majority or otherwise, the federal government would have to step in and rectify things.

Pure democracy works well in small groups (groups the size of a hunter-gatherer community), but does not in larger groups.

Marxist theorists generally promote pure democracy. The problem with this is that it is simply not workable, and destroys itself.

Bob