Americans are constantly told we must fight for democracy.
Leading up to elections, politicians extol the democratically-expressed wisdom of the electorate they hope to represent (that those elected often then ignore or overturn).
We are told that the American Revolution was for democracy; that people have died for our democratic right to vote; that each vote was crucial; that if you don’t vote, you don’t care about America; and so on.
We even hear proposals to replace the Electoral College because it isn’t democratic enough.
Such rhetoric ignores the fact that democracy can destroy liberty as well as preserve it.
For a minor example, ask yourself this: “Would I have more or less liberty if a majority vote installed a government that decides what I can or cannot say, see, or hear?”
More to the point, ask yourself, “Would I have more or less liberty if that was how my healthcare decisions were made for me, or how my continued prospects of employment were determined?”
Currently, the “democratic” equals “I approve” approach has turned into a cottage industry about how America and the world face massive threats to our democracy.
Good examples are bungling Biden’s statement that “Democracy doesn’t happen by accident. We have to defend it, fight for it, strengthen it, renew it,” and his “Summit on Democracy” (ignoring the irony of how many things his regime has imposed or tried to impose against the wishes of many Americans).
It is also illustrated by a Google search that turned up over 4.5 million hits for “threat to democracy.”
Unfortunately, while democratically determining who will be entrusted with the reins of government may generally be the best hope to enable governments to change without bloodshed, democracy is not America’s core.
Liberty is.
Discuss.
https://www.aier.org/article/the-democracy-illusion/
