Quote:So we live in a democracy.
I gather you mean America.
Well,no you don't actually live a democracy.You live in Republic,which is not the same thing.. You elect represenatives who are expected to vote in accordance of with the wishes of their voters. The voters make their wishes known by electing people whose views more-or-less match their own. In an ideal world,without political parties. In the US public opinion does not drive policy.It is far more likely to be driven by lobbies of vested interests such as the NRA, the HBO's, banks and 'The industrial- military complex'. (just look at the current pig's breakfast which was meant to be health care reform)
Republics and parliamentary democracies (found in the UK and British Commonwealth countries such as Australia, Canad and India) are based on an idealised version of Athenian democracy.
Athenian democracy is [wrongly] seen as truly just and represenative: majority rule by referendum. (California has a limited form of this style of government) ALL voters voted on EVERY important issue. --Of course eligible voters made up about 30% of population, as women and slaves were excluded. This figure was not generally exceeded in many modern democracies until about C19th.Before then, only male property owner could vote.
At best,democracy is the dictatorship of the majority,yet no one has yet come up with a better system for large complex societies such as ours.
