2004.12.01
Long Live the Republic
Long Live the Republic
As some of you may know, I’ve a keen interest in politics. It started with polisci classes in college and has smouldering for years. Many entries in my old analog journals, and this digital journal, deal directly or indirectly with political thought and theory.
One of my most recent discoveries has been some of the work of George Lakoff. I read his don’t think of an elephant (Here) while in NYC recently. Based on this I picked up Moral Politics (Here) in which he goes into much more detail about his theories. Though a “liberal” himself, Moral Politics is suprisingly analytical and mostly unbiased.
Another recent interest of mine is a question I asked Mookee a long time ago: What is the difference between a Republic and a Democracy? I’d seen the words used as if they were interchangable. Indeed, to many people today they are interchangable, but they should not be.
Democracy is a government of the numeric majority. Rights, such as they are, are limited by what the majority relegates to the individual; in essence there are no rights as majorities are mercurial on various topics. The 1928 U.S. Army Training Manual has an interesting definition of democracy.
A government of the masses. Authority - derived through mass meeting or any form of ‘direct’ expression. Results in mobocracy. Attitude toward property is communistic - negating property rights. Attitude toward law is that the will of the majority shall regulate, whether it be based upon deliberation or governed by passion, prejudice, and impulse, without restraint or regard to consequences. Results in demagogism, license, agitation, discontent, anarchy.
This was, it should be noted, the attitude of our Founding Fathers. Alexander Hamilton said, “We are a Republican Government. Real liberty is never found in despotism or in the extremes of Democracy.” Other Founding Fathers exhibited the same caution towards democracy. In fact you will not find the word “democracy” anywhere in the Constitution.
So a democracy is rule by numeric majority, but what is a Republic, and specifically the American Republic? It is a hard question to answer adequately. A republic is a form of government where power derives from the people, the people own the government (the government is accountable to the people). A key ingredient to this mix is that above all is the Law. Everyone, from the governed to the governing, is subject to the law. In America the Law is the Constitution.
The American Republic was founded on another key principle which is a Limited Government. Because the Constitution incorporates some of the principles of democracy (specifically Voting) it had to ensure that the majority would not become a tyranny. For this reason there are many intricate checks and balances among the three branches of government (Executive, Judicial, Legislative) and the people (for example, The Press).
The lesson I’ve learned is that to call America a democracy is a mistake. We are a Republic that utilizes some democratic processes. The Shapers of our Constitution would be shocked that we so casually talk about “American Democracy” and “spreading democracy around the globe.” They would probably start another revolution to stop us. To them democracy was a path to destruction. James Madison said, “Democracies have ever been spectacles of turbulence and contention; have ever been found incompatible with personal security, or the rights of property; and have in general been as short in their lives as they have been violent in their deaths.”
We are a Republic, and being a Republic made us the greatest nation on Earth. I am now greatly worried that most people view America as a democracy, and my fear is that with the current trends in politics and culture that we might become an actual democracy.
Long Live the Republic!
Categorized: political thoughts
You can follow any responses to this entry with a RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
One Response to “Long Live the Republic”
- douglas.nerad » Who’s Afraid of the Dominionists? says (October 1st, 2006 at 16:29:35 )
[...] Obviously these people have never heard of the Tyranny of the Majority and why we aren’t a Democracy but we are a Republic (read more). Further, if they are complaining that we have a Constitution (a “sick and sad joke”) then they need to leave the country and go somewhere that doesn’t have one. Maybe the Moon or the bottom of the Pacific, or perhaps Hell. [...]
