Essay Of Democracy

Essay about Digital Democracy
A Democratic Society Essay
Essay on Democracy in America
Democracy Essay examples
Democracy Essay
Forms Of Democracy
Democracy Essay examples
Democracy Essay
Democracy: An Analysis Essay
Essay about Democracy

1. Essay about Digital Democracy
Digital Democracy
Over the years the media has made citizens major role players in politics. Ross Perot opened eyes
by putting the 1992 Election in the media and thereby allowing voters to become directly involved
in politics. The Internet, the new form of mass media "has turned into a major political and media
industry" (Grossman 16). Because of the rise the Internet has taken, the idea of direct democracy has
risen. The foundation of direct democracy is in self–government. The claim is that the presence of
the Internet will increase citizens' involvement in political issues by allowing them access to more
information. This is significant because it takes a look at the impact of technology on society and
politics, as well by...show more content...
Representative government is grounded in the Constitution. The Constitution was created to protect
citizens from factious groups through the establishment of an extended republic intended to
"diminish the chances that any one faction will gain majority" (Kamark & Nye 29). However, it is
still possible that citizens, as the majority, will tyrannize each other (25).
Theorists contend that representative government is headed for direct democracy by way of the
Internet. Essentially what will happen is that representatives will no longer be needed because
citizens will be able to use the Internet to make decisions. Grossman contends that "the more power
[citizens] have to control their government and to involve themselves in making its decisions, the
better" (41). Over the years citizens have been obtaining information through the media, newspapers,
and other forms of mass media. The issues that arise with obtaining information through these
sources are that the government can easily censor them. With the Internet comes "vastly expanded
capacities for data collection, for computation, and for automation" (Kamark & Nye 22).
In his essay, Applbaum expresses the need for increased intelligence with the increase of
information available on the Internet (Kamark & Nye 22). Basically, as the Internet becomes a
larger resource for information, it will fall to the same fate as other forms of mass media and will
therefor become more censored as
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2. A Democratic Society Essay
A Democratic Society
Throughout time the debate upon which is the best system of government has been an ongoing
debate. Somewhere between the realms of democracy, socialism, fascism, communism, and
monarchism lies the answer to the perfect system. Traditionally speaking, North America has always
tried to remain democratic in ruling. The democratic system, unlike it's alternatives, encourages
equality and liberty among the people which in modern society, makes it the most attractive system
of government today.
Arguably, equality is the goal of many governments today. But what one must realize is that equality
cannot be reached without giving someone else inequality. While democracy influences equality,
...show more content...
Liberty is possibly the most important attribute in American and Canadian society. What people
want is the ability to make their own decisions and go about life with the freedom to do so. In a
democratic society, people are able to voice their opinions to government and ultimately play an
important role in the make up and organization of society. To a new nation, these attributes of our
society are quite attractive. Many new nations today are making the switch to democratic
government. The problem with this is that most of these nations have never been democratic before.
Therefore, new nations are having great difficulty because such a switch is not easily accomplished.
To develop a democratic society it has taken some more more than an entire century. These new
nations tend to rush the change and in the end they become frustrated because such a switch is not
as easily accomplished as thought. The features of a modern democratic state are firstly a society
dedicated to the preservation of rights and freedoms. From that, a government system must adhere to
developing a form of government which encompasses the values of a working society. In other
words, a government for the people, run by the people, and a system into which they have invested.
An excellent example of a nation that comprises the rights and freedoms of its people is Canada. As
a nation we
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3. Essay on Democracy in America
Democracy is a unique type of government, and the purpose of this essay is to illustrate the
strengths and weaknesses that a democratic government provides. I will detail that many
components of this type of society are both strengths and weakness as each component has
beneficial aspects as well as unavoidable pitfalls. A democracy is a government by the people, in
which the power is vested in the people themselves. The people then elect representatives who
conduct their power in a free electoral system. The Declaration of Independence, which says that all
men are created equal, was written on the premise of a democracy. According to John Locke, who
wrote The Social Contract, before acknowledging that an individual is part of a...show more content...
The laws of society are applied equally to everyone, but equitable to the circumstances. The same
holds true for taxes: those with higher incomes pay a larger percentage of their income in taxes than
those in lower tax brackets. Although not equally applied, the tax laws are equitable. Democratic
laws are written in such a way as to allow interpretation depending upon circumstances. "A thousand
circumstances, independent of the will of man, facilitate the maintenance of a democratic republic
in the United States" Initially, laws are difficult to design because lawmakers can't think of every
possibility, every scenario, and every obstacle that may present itself in the democracy. Despite
these difficulties, laws keep society together and provide unity for the citizens. Advantages for
creating laws, include, but are not limited to, providing direction for the collection of taxes,
declaring clear expectations for compliance and punishment of citizens and elimination of chaos. A
weakness of democracy is the "Tyranny of the Majority". This is an inevitable pitfall, because in a
democracy, the power is vested foremost in the people the constituting the society itself. Alexis de
Tocqueville wrote on this concept:
"Democratic laws generally tend to promote the welfare of the greatest possible number; for they
emanate from the majority of the citizens, who are subject to error, but who cannot have an interest
opposed to
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4. Democracy Essay examples
Traditionally, the purpose of democracy is to prevent the accumulation of too much authority in the
hands of one or a few. It rests on a balance of giving enough power for what Alexander Hamilton
called "vigorous and energetic government" and avoiding giving out so much power that
it becomes abused. Democracy is believed by some, such as Winston Churchill, to be the "least
bad" form of government. By creating a system where the public can remove administrations,
without changing the legal basis for government, democracy aims at reducing political uncertainty
and instability, and assuring citizens that however much they may disagree with present policies,
they will be given a regular chance to change those who are in...show more content...
The threat of coercive power is still the main cause for concern. A historical example would be Hitler
in pre–Nazi Germany, who was 'elected' in 1933 by the German people with the largest minority
vote. For this reason, some countries have created constitutions/laws that protect particular issues
from majoritarian decision–making. Generally, changes in these constitutions require the agreement
of a supermajority of the elected representatives, or require a judge and jury to agree that
evidentiary and procedural standards have been fulfilled by the state, or, very rarely, a
referendum. This means a majority can still legitimately coerce a minority, but such a minority
would be very small and, as a practical matter, it is harder to get a larger proportion of the people
to agree to such actions. On the other hand, proponents of broader democracy wonder what gives a
small minority of people the right to impose their will on the majority.
"Democracy has failed to eliminate social inequality, and this seems a permanent and structural
failure. It is undeniable that all democratic societies have social inequalities – substantial differences
in income, in wealth, and in social status. These differences have persisted: there is no indication that
inequality will ever disappear in democracies. In the stable western democracies, inequality is
apparently increasing. The pattern established in the United States is, that the lowest incomes do not
grow:
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5. Democracy Essay
Democracy
In the 2000 presidential election, less than 59% of our population saw fit to even vote. 80.5% of
those voting were white, that's roughly 60% of the white population. Of the meager 19.5% of the
vote the non–white population represented, less than 51% of non–whites able to vote actually did
(Census). What does this mean? How can democracy – a republic like ours – correctly function
without a more complete representation of opinion from its people? Former UCLA Law professor
Julian Eule argued in his essay "Judicial Review of Direct Democracy" that the framers of our
constitution set up the republic to in effect protect us from ourselves, to protect us from this sort of
majority rule.(Eule) I believe that this misrepresentation...show more content...
If the opinions of the people are not reflected by the leader they voted into office, so too may his
appointees. By not offsetting the extremist votes with the statistically more moderate vote of the
general populace, extremists are allowed into office to affect their possibly racist ideas upon the
public.
Does this rift in the voting population and the legislators themselves necissarily cause the racist
legislation and election of racist legislators? Even the nature of proposed equal rights legislation
such as affirmative action and its likes are a point of contention. Supported officially by the
NAACP and its likes, affirmative action has been largely argued as a positive step toward civil
equality, it has also been argued that "affirmative action programs [are] discrimination in
disguise."(CNN) The NAACP and ACLU, however, argue that the scope of affirmative action is
simply too small to be effective and thus appears discriminatory in nature. Due to the nature of the
issue and the voting habits of the public, the protection of minority rights cannot be necissarily
guaranteed. Evidence of this can be seen even here in texas, where former Governor Bush's policies
(in a state with a 29% minority population) caused a 35% decrease in minority admissions to the UT
Law program.(ACLU)"The President loves to opine about his 'commitment to racial justice' but, at
practically every turn, he
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6. Forms Of Democracy
What is Democracy?
A democracy is a system of government where the citizens have the right to elect government
representatives who jointly create a government body for the entire nation. In a democratic
government, people have certain rights that the government can't take away from them; these rights
are guaranteed. The eight main forms of democracy are:
1. Direct democracy 2. Representative democracy 3. Presidential democracy
4. Parliamentary democracy 5. Authoritarian democracy 6. Participatory democracy 7. Islamic
democracy
8. Social democracy
Direct Democracy – Direct democracy is when citizens vote for a policy directly. If the
government needs to pass a law or policy, then it goes to the people. The people place a vote on
the issue and through their vote, they decide the fate of their country. When the country's
population is small and educated a direct democracy is a good idea. Switzerland has had an
extensive history of very successful direct democracy. However, most countries are too big so it
makes it too complicated for a direct democracy to work. In these cases, people choose to elect
representatives from their country on their behalf, instead of voting on every issue.
Representative Democracy– Representative democracy is when the citizens choose to vote for who
will represent them in a parliament. Its reputation relies on defending the rights of most of the
people in the state and also the minorities. Australia and New Zealand are examples of countries
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7. Democracy Essay examples
Democracy
When I think of the word democracy, I think of Government. Democracy is a form of government
in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised directly by them or by their
elected agents under a free electoral system. This means that Government must protect the basic
rights, or liberties, of all people. This is the system of government that United States are base on.
The United States, Cuba, and Democracy
During the Clinton administration, the sentiment has been proclaimed on so many occasions by the
president and other political leaders, and dutifully reiterated by the media, that the thesis: "Cuba is
the only non–democracy in the Western Hemisphere" is now nothing short of received...show more
content...
If, despite this record, the United States can insist that Cuba is the only "non–democracy" in the
Western Hemisphere, we are left with the inescapable conclusion that this thing called "democracy",
as seen from the White House, may have little or nothing to do with many of our most cherished
human rights. Indeed, numerous pronouncements emanating from Washington officialdom over
the years make plain that "democracy", at best, or at most, is equated solely with elections and
civil liberties. Not even jobs, food, and shelter are part of the equation. Thus, a nation with hordes
of hungry, homeless, untended sick, barely literate, unemployed, and/or tortured people, who have
loved ones, are being disappeared and/or murdered with state connivance, can be said to be living
in a "democracy". Its literal Greek meaning of "rule of the people" implying that this is the kind of
life the people actually want –– provided that every two years or four years they have the right to go
to a designated place and put an X next to the name of one or another individual who promises to
relieve their miserable condition. But who will, typically, do virtually nothing of the kind; and
provided further that in this society there is at least a certain minimum of freedom –– how much
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8. Democracy Essay
Democracy
The word democracy literally means "the government of the people" (demos). Plato, of course, is
using the term to refer to the democracy of Athens, a small city–state where every adult male citizen
was a member of the Assembly, and so had a voice in governmental policy. But in Athens more than
half of the population were slaves or foreign residents, neither of whom had any civic rights. Hence,
the defects that Plato sees in Athenian democracy are probably not the same ones he would find in
such modern–day democracies as the United States or France.
The transition from oligarchy to...show more content...
With wry sarcasm (or is it?), Socrates says that the democracy seems to be "a delightful form of
government, anarchic and motley, assigning a kind of equality indiscriminately to equals and
unequals alike!"
Where, then, is the defect in the democratic constitution? Why does Plato consider a democracy a
degenerate society that is only slightly more preferable than a tyranny?
Socrates reveals the defect when he describes the democratic man. He begins his description by
distinguishing between necessary and unnecessary appetites. Appetites that maintain life are
necessary; all others, and Socrates appears to include sex, are unnecessary. Although the
oligarchic man loved wealth, he was ruled by his necessary appetites. Not so his son, who does
not even respect wealth. The democratic youth seeks every kind of pleasure under the sun; his
desires are unbridled by any concern for moderation. He neglects his studies and all honorable
pursuits. He flaunts his appetites, for he believes that one pleasure is as good as another. As a
democratic man he is unable to make distinctions. His total lack of a philosophical nature makes him
a comic character whose life
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9. Democracy: An Analysis Essay
Winston Churchill once remarked that "democracy is the worst form of government except all the
others that have been tried". In agreement with his statement, this paper will examine the problems
of democratic governments using specific examples, and compare it to the failure of fascist
governments in Nazi Germany and Italy and communist governments in the Soviet Union and China.
Theoretically, democracy is a stable form of government where power is in the hands of the people.
In a democracy, people have the liberty to elect officials that best represent their interests, and
political institutions exist as a result: Benjamin Constant argues in The Liberty of the Ancients
Compared with that of the Moderns that "true modern liberty is...show more content...
During elections in countries with corrupt governments, for example, it has to be decided whether
the guarantee of every individual's right to vote or who wins is more important. (Wong, Lecture,
October 24) Moreover, deep divides continue to exist and separate groups in democratic countries by
race, religion, language, and class, resulting in tension and, in some cases, oppression. Thus
democracy, despite its emphasis on liberty, equality and plurality, can still be problematic.
According to Andrew Janos, "the price of economic progress has been political turmoil". (Janos, pg.
21) If the Modernization Theory holds that countries tend to become more democratic the more they
modernize, then political turmoil is to be expected in democracies. Certainly this can occur in both
parliamentary and presidential systems: as Linz argues, the presidential system concentrates too
much power on the president, resulting in "winner–take–all" politics (Linz, pg. 56) and the
polarization of political parties. This is evident in the United States, where the president is elected
separately and Congress is divided between the opposing Democrats and Republicans. Conversely,
the parliamentary system in Britain, as well as that adapted by the former British colonies of Sri
Lanka and Nigeria, has had its fair share of single–party hegemony and political abuse. (Horowitz,
pg. 78) Democracy is therefore not a perfect form of government when put in practice, and much of
its
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10. Essay about Democracy
Like a living organism, democracy must be born into a time where the parents, circumstances, are
right to understand the potential of such a child, democracy, and the soil, society, may be described
as the type of state that is ready to accept and nurture that child. Metaphors aside, democracy has
been noted to provide a better opportunity for human development. Democracy is also commonly
defined as a political system that is associated with free and fair elections. A democratic regime
simply refers to a system of governance that places sovereignty in the citizen's hands which allow
them to contribute to the process of decision–making through their elected officials. Democracy is
not as old as many may originally think. As recent as 1974,...show more content...
These breakdowns can occur through military action, a seizure of power by the opposition, or a
collapse of the state. When a collapse occurs, the state cannot coerce and is unable to successfully
control the inhabitants of the given territory. Diamond conveys an important reason why some
authoritarian regimes lose domestic legitimacy. The citizens of a state may not be confident in their
government when "... they fulfill their self–proclaimed missions and become redundant or when they
completely fail to do so and clearly cannot deliver," (Diamond 91). Failures of dictatorial regimes
in countries like Greece and Argentina were a result of bad economic or political performances.
Another example of authoritarian failure occurred in Africa in the early 1990s. Most African
countries were severely set back because of massive foreign debts. In order to pay back some of
these loans, many governments of these African countries would use almost four times their export
earnings leaving the government with no funds to provide basic services for its citizens. These
failures were not just economic but political as well. It got to a point where these "... authoritarian
states became too broke to buy off their opposition and too exhausted to repress them, protests
escalated," (Diamond 93). These protests had prompted not just a change in the leader, but a change
in the
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