Hi,
A leader of Renaissance Florence once said that democracy is a system where opinions are counted, not weighed. That is why we have a republican democracy, because the founding fathers were well enough versed in history to see what a shambles the Greek democracies had been, and how much better the Roman republic worked (at least till the power was centered in a small group). The idea of having people select their leaders and then letting the leaders do their job makes sense. Most people don't have the time or the background to understand the issues in the detail necessary to make intelligent choices. Pure democracy is mob rule. I feel that the initiative, referendum, and, to a lesser extent, recall policies add too much power to the people and chaos to the government. I love Jefferson, but I agree with Hamilton.
--Pete
(05-12-2010, 11:46 PM)Jester Wrote: One of the most important principles of democracy - representatives owe the people their judgment, not their blind servitude. Just because the people say X or Y, doesn't mean that's what should automatically become law, without careful deliberation.
A leader of Renaissance Florence once said that democracy is a system where opinions are counted, not weighed. That is why we have a republican democracy, because the founding fathers were well enough versed in history to see what a shambles the Greek democracies had been, and how much better the Roman republic worked (at least till the power was centered in a small group). The idea of having people select their leaders and then letting the leaders do their job makes sense. Most people don't have the time or the background to understand the issues in the detail necessary to make intelligent choices. Pure democracy is mob rule. I feel that the initiative, referendum, and, to a lesser extent, recall policies add too much power to the people and chaos to the government. I love Jefferson, but I agree with Hamilton.
--Pete
How big was the aquarium in Noah's ark?