As we look ahead to 2024, I’m re-sharing this discussion prompt originally published on October 23, 2021. I believe the more we envision and give voice to what inspires us about democracy, the more we have the fuel to confront the challenges of the coming election.
No one said it would be easy. The Revolutionary War lasted more than eight years as the American colonies sought to extricate themselves from British rule and forge an independent nation. No one said it would be perfect. Not women who didn’t win the right to vote until August 18, 1920 with the ratification of the 19th Amendment—and surely not Black Americans who first won the right to vote with the ratification of the 14th and 15th Amendments after the Civil War and have continued to struggle to exercise their rights with the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and beyond. As Frederick Douglass precisely observed in 1865, ““Slavery is not abolished until the Black man has the ballot.”
Throughout American history, the assumption that democracy is a value and system worth fighting for—a sacred idea that distinguishes the United States from tyrannical rule—has been a defining principle. Democracy has been a shared promise, not only for Americans, but for people the world over. If the American dream has provided a vision of a better economic life, American democracy has represented the potential for free people to determine their own fate. It’s hard to overstate how powerful the first three words of the US Constitution are: ”We the People…”
A commitment to democracy is something that I long treated as a given among Americans. Sadly, not anymore. But rather than focus here on the anti-democratic forces that are working aggressively and methodically to end the American democratic project in an effort to get and keep power, I’d like to focus on the ideas and ideals, the values and principles that make democracy and the right to vote worth fighting for. Why does democracy matter to you?
I am hoping that we can fill the comment section with song—with a chorus of thoughts and feelings, experiences and observations—to reiterate and remind each other why democracy and the passage of voting rights matter so deeply. As always, I am grateful for the contributions of everyone here and the opportunity to learn from each other.
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Dec 30, 2023·edited Dec 30, 2023Liked by Steven Beschloss
I lived and worked in dictator-led countries for about 20 years. This includes Russia and Central Asia (6 countries). I know what it feels like to have NO civil or legal rights, and as a foreigner you could be incarcerated or murdered at any time for any drummed-up reason. It develops a deep understanding and love for freedom, democracy, and justice. I wrote From Democracy to Democrazy to better inform Americans of the truth. While the American media (and public) spotlight, ever enthralled by the sensationalism of Trump's legal woes - which are are justified and based on true evidence - remains fixated on these trails, a crucial and overlooked danger continues to unfold. The influence of Putin's strategies quietly attempts to reshape the trajectory of American politics. He blames the U.S. for the downfall of the Soviet Union, and wishes to destroy our democracy from within. He is succeeding. WE SEE THIS HAPPENING NOW! www.democrazy2020.org
I'm just going to add that as a daughter of Holocaust survivors who were slaves for 5 yrs at the Ghetto Lodz Slave Labor Camp who came to America in 1949 (I was their "anchor baby"born in 1951) & they became citizens in 1954- I will never give up on America & Democracy
Dad was in the Resistance & tho it took 15 yrs-He eventually went to Germany to testify against some SS officers -We must have justice & accountability for our democracy to survive
I fear my white son has been taken in by victim-speak on various current podcasts. And I have no more influence over him. He is 26, a man, not college educated, works among the white working class men in manufacturing, and living more than 2000 miles from me. He was once a clear-headed, intuitive, kind young man. Now he believes he is not making enough money and I think he thinks the orange man is the one working on his behalf, that perhaps he is the one who will keep him safe and taken care of. How has that lying sack o’ sh*t managed to hoodwink so many?! I think the Joe Rogans, Charlie Kirks, and the like are stealing our boys from right under our noses as a couple of my friends are experiencing the same thing. Somehow, Kyle Rittenhouse is a hero to some. How can that be?! There are so many anti-democracy outlets infiltrating every pocket around our dear country. ...and I haven’t even addressed the lack of freedom for my daughter’s reproductive health. All this to say, I hold our democracy sacred and it simply cannot slip away! Like someone else said, I have children.
Democracy matters to us because its highest ideal and goal is to level the playing field and make opportunity and participation available to every voice in the nation equally. We are far from achieving this ideal, but Democracy is the only vehicle of which I'm aware that makes such qualities even a remote possibility. It is so worth fighting for and earning.
Democracy to me means the government is working for the people and by the people as it should. Our elected officials actually represent the people who put them there. It means that I can state my opinions without fear of being silenced. Democracy means ALL people are free to live their lives as they wish, unless it hurts others, in which case we have the rule of law that our county is based on. No one is above the law. Period. Democracy means freedom. Men and women have fought for it and lost their lives for it. It is something I took for granted. Never again will I do that. The thought of our country being run by a narcissistic sociopath scares me more than I can express.
Democracy matters because it’s the only thing that can save capitalism from its trajectory of excess and because the racial and cultural melting pot that is America is increasingly less dominated by white entitlement.
The only way our society and economy can survive the desperate attempts of white nationalists to impose a death grip on political power, allied with narcissistic billionaires all too ready to manipulate their fears of inevitable change is to constantly and consistently elevate democratic governance, the right of every American to vote and to have the majority prevail.
If we can preserve the right of every American to be heard at the ballot box, and commit that every election will be honored as the will of the people, we make persuasion, not violence and chaos, the road to safety and a secure future for everyone, even the losers of elections.
Democracy is important because it makes consultation, collaboration, and persuasion the routes to power, not the possession of lethal weapons and willingness to demonize and commit to violence against our fellow citizens.
The 2024 election in particular is our political tipping point. If we can’t use and accept the results of a democratic process to choose our path going forward as the cultural compromise of generations of immigrants, which America has always been, then our country is truly lost.
For all that is holy, please vote and make sure all your family members and friends do the same.
My father and his seven brothers each served in our military during WORLD WAR II and Korea. My mother’s three brothers did likewise.
There was no doubt about my immediate future, I would serve in United States Air Force. In 1962, I only applied to colleges with AFROTC. In 1966, at a time in which we had a mandatory draft, I received my commission and subsequently served as a B-52 Navigator/Electronic Warfare Officer and subsequently flew missions in our Viet Nam Conflict before separating from the service in 1971.
With my VA educational benefits, thereafter I attended law school in a class with several Nam vets and became a licensed State of Texas attorney in 1974. I practiced as a business, civil lawyer in Texas actively for 40 years.
These life experiences lead me to certain conclusions:
1. Every young man and woman should be required to serve our country either in the military or a Jimmy Carter style Peace Corp. to in effect earn their citizenship, learn the discipline to become a contributing adult nad receive appropriate educational and career training as well as medical benefits. Additionally, the exposure to and reliance upon persons of every race will mitigate racial disparities and prejudices.
2. Create a professional federally staffed election process to control, fund and sanction all elected offices from school boards to the President.
3. Abolish the Citizens United decision and regulate as well as fund the financial aspects of the voting process to mitigate the control of large donors, individual or corporate have on the selection of candidates for public office.
I full well realize that these are difficult goals to achieve, however they are neither impossible nor to accomplish in the whole and some exist or have existed and simply require the will, fortitude and heart to enact or revive.
If we fail to make an effort to deliver a fair and just political system as opposed to the current future of a divided, I’ve got mine, and I want more of yours approach Trump offers as our political system of government, this nation will cease to exist before the end of my fifteen year old grandson’s lifetime, if not mine.
I'm lucky. I have a member of Congress representing me that I like and admire, and who I'm happy to vote for. Not everyone is so lucky. But even if I weren't, I'd want the right to vote anyway -- to vote him out. I think that's the essence of democracy: that we choose who represents us in government. That's why I always vote in every election. That's why I support the right of every citizen to vote. It's why I'm a Democrat.
As a 16 years old HS junior, I’ll admit to studying U.S. history but never thought much about my personal freedom and how that relates to our government and legislators, judges and presidents. But as an 80 year old I have seen and heard about other citizens here at home and in other countries and am grateful to be an American citizen. It’s important that as citizens we follow the elections and those running for office so that our government take care of ALL our citizens.
This country for which my distant paternal grandfather fought during the American Revolutionary War is defined as a democratic republic. Each person is equal to the other. That fact continues to be in tension, with backlash against minorities becoming more virulent. We have continued to serve since then.
To me, "democracy" in the U.S. means being able to be free to be me, within the confines of law. It is the promise of liberty; liberty and justice for all, equally applied. Yet, we know full well "equally applied" is a myth. We know that our system of laws as applied is two-tiered: One rule of law for the rich and powerful; a second rule of law for the rest of us. Certain groups are working feverishly to take away our rights. Groups such as Alliance Defending Freedom, Moms for Liberty, The Federalist Society, Heritage Foundation, and others are pushing to constrain individual freedoms. They hide under the veil of lies and deception, using clever words to conceal their inner evil. They are anti-minority, anti-LGBTQ, and even anti-women. Yes! Women continue to be oppressed by men (and, sadly some women). Those men know little to nothing about women's bodies. Autocratic authoritarianism is "right around the corner". I am of the mind that what is my business is my business and what is your business is your business. The constraint on that premise is: So long as there is no abuse, physical or psychological. We take our democracy for granted. The enemy who walks among us and stalks us wants to take that away. "They" have no greater rights than you or I. That is the way of a democracy. Yet, their objective is to destroy the democracy that benefits them and allows them to openly defile and defy the country which we hold near and dear.
The fact that you are even raising the question speaks volumes about where we are, currently, as a nation. The question will be on the ballot in November; millions of so-called Americans will vote to repeal the vision of our Founders. But millions more (MORE), understanding the stakes, will vote in their favor. The coalition of refugee Republicans and independents with the Democratic Party (see: Liz Cheney) will be a key, and helpful moving forward. And let's not kid ourselves, those favoring the worst form of fascism as articulated by Caligula are not going to cry "uncle."
I am a Baby Boomer who has travelled and read, because I could. Happy New Year, I pray, and keep up the good work.
This country and our example throughout the world are precious. We smear it, harm it, degrade it, and cast it aside without a second thought at our peril. Without the strong institutions we have, without an experienced, compassionate leader to guide us in our behavior and deeds across the country and world, America will shrivel to a sad, darkened, and weak bastion of self-centered autocrats. Democracy provides the best hope for individual self-actualization and progress for a country composed of strong, accomplished individuals who will make America once again the envy of the world by example, not by bullying.
Dear Steve and Others: Our country is in serious trouble and we are "out-matched" in this struggle. For the past 23 years - since Putin assumed power of Russia - his number one goal has been the destruction of the United States from within. The tools he is using include our racism, antisemitism, violence, cyber attacks, and the manipulation and control of Trump - a man who was easily swayed by KGB invitations of wine, women, flattery, and money. Even as far back as 2008, Trump Jr. commented in a conference that a large percent of the Trump Empire money comes from Russia. After he declared 4 bankruptcies, Trump turned to Russia for income (U.S. banks refused to work with Trump) and they happily used his dire need for more and more money to control him and to funnel black cash into the U.S. - millions upon millions of dollars. This influx of black cash depletes and hurts our economy. The Russians also loaned $9.8 million to Marie LePen in France. She is the French presidential contender. It is all about control and threats. Look at the facts. Trump jumped through hoops to please Putin. He withdrew U.S. troops from Germany and other vital parts of the world like Syria and Lebanon. He signed a deal with the Taliban in Afghanistan, and within days of the American troop withdrawal - the Taliban again took control of this country and the democratic elected President fled for his life. Vital top secret military information has just disappeared and most likely is now in Moscow. Stalin was perhaps the worse dictator to ever rule. It is estimated that he killed at least 20 million people. This is relevant because Putin is compared to Stalin, and Trump has emulated and praised Putin. If Trump is re-elected, our democracy will die. This means each of us will no longer be able to freely write blogs and substack messages that mention Trump. This means that there will no longer be free elections. This means that Trump will continue to threaten every elected official in D.C. and other locations. It is called a DICTATORSHIP and not a Democracy when a leader threatens elected officials so they do as he wishes. This is how the DUMA in Moscow works, and it was how the Republican US Congress operated when Trump was living in the WH. Read: From Democracy to Democrazy to better understand the facts and learn about the proof of what is happening in our country. www.democrazy2020.org We have one year in order to detox the brainwashed Republicans and educate the voting public about Trump's connections to Russia.
As a teenager I lived for several years in a country taken over by a military junta. Stupidly I felt somewhat shielded from their actions because of my American citizenship, despite the the fact that I witnessed the oppression all around me. The silences in public with my friends who were vulnerable, the protective instinct to keep them from arbitrary harassment. The imprisonment of some.
It’s freedom, and I am reminded of the price we paid throughout our US history for this freedom every time I visit Arlington national cemetery, where my parents are buried, I see the acres of headstones identifying those brave men and women who gave their lives to protect this freedom.
Dec 30, 2023·edited Dec 30, 2023Liked by Steven Beschloss
Democracy matters to me because of its freedoms and civil rights but also because it allows me to be part of the game, so to speak. I attended Hampshire College whose motto is ‘To know is not Enough’ and I take that edict seriously! The opportunity to volunteer and be part of the über democratic ‘Town Meeting’ way of governance in my MA town is amazing. Everyone has a chance to vote on most decisions and volunteer on committees that really work effectively to get things done. Although sometimes flawed, being able to participate and help make a difference in a concerted and organized system of local governance is one of the many things that makes a democracy great!
Whenever I travel to DC, I always try to visit Arlington National Cemetary. It's like a pilgrimage for me. Amidst that beautiful and touching place, the highlight for me is watching the Changing of the Guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. I'm always awe-struck by the precision and grace of the ceremony, and the reverence and hush that befalls the spectators. Particularly when I see foreign visitors standing there in rapt awe, this always stirs my soul with a deep love for our nation and our founding values. I guess you could call it a quiet form of patriotism.
I would normally respond with some high-minded, aspirational observations, as I suspect many of your readers will. Our tribe is as such. But my immediate reaction is more personal, and I suspect that true democracy is more intimate and less theoretical than we often make it. Grittier and less eloquent. Close up and personal. So, at least for today, my answer is that its value is proportional to its cost.
My dad was a plainspoken boy from the high plains of New Mexico. A dust bowl boy. He went into the CCC in Albuquerque, then the NM National Guard. Was called up early in 1941 and sent to the Philippines. The war came for him on December 8, 1941. He was captured on Bataan in March ‘42. Force marched, wounded and sick with malaria, to the notorious Cabanatuan POW camp. Shipped to Japan a year later, where he was a slave laborer in the coal mines at Camp Fukuoka #7. Finally liberated after the war ended in 1945, he came home slowly through a few different repatriation hospitals. He weighed 87 pounds. Suffered from the effects of starvation, beatings, beriberi, malaria, and tropical ulcers. He never really recovered.
Thats the price that a boy from the high mesa country paid for me to be free and to live in a country free from tyrants, where my vote counts and my kids, too, can live in a free and democratic country.
I can’t pay him back for that extraordinary sacrifice. He died 35 years ago. But I can pay it forward. Democracy is our birthright, bought and paid for dearly not only by patriots and heroes, but by ordinary men and women who secure it with a ballot when they can, or a bullet if they must.
A former president once observed that if we don’t fight like hell we’re not going to have a country anymore. It’s the only true thing ever to come out of his mouth.
Thank you Steve. We have less than one year to educate the American public about the realities of life in a dictatorship. Mass mind manipulation (aka brainwashing) was used extensively by Trump. It was started a century ago in totalitarian countries, and used extensively in China, Germany, Austria, Italy, and a host of other dictator-led countries. Lo and behold, it is now found in the United States and used by Trump every time he opens his mouth. Brainwashing is defined as telling lies over and over until it is perceived as the truth. Once convinced, a person no longer has independent thought. If the lies also contain hatred, it releases a chemical in the brain that may result in violence. We saw this on January 6th. Millions of Americans have been exposed to Trump's lies and brainwashing. Hitler changed an entire country from a peaceful nation to mass murderers and about 7 million humans were tortured and murdered. Stalin killed at least 20 million people. Putin is catching up to Stalin with his invasion and war in Ukraine. Trump killed over one million Americans with his deceptive approach to Covid. We are in trouble, and people do not realize it. I was at a book signing event at a Barnes and Noble for my book called From Democracy to Democrazy (by Graham). A middle-aged woman came up to me and said: "I believe Putin is a great leader." I was so shocked that I opened my mouth but nothing came out. This is word-by-word exactly what Trump had said on TV only a week before. Our country is facing it's demise from it's own citizens and most Republicans do not have a clue what is about to happen or why. I am scared. Elizabeth
As a side note, I am starting a Substack in January named after the book: From Democracy to Democrazy. It is a small attempt to provide facts and figures to better educate our citizens about the stark reality of what Trump plans and why.
Democracy is freedom to live our lives as we choose within the boundaries of lawful expression and dissent. It is far from perfect but it’s the best system we have and it’s worth fighting for.
I am truly saddened and horrified that our country is on the precipice of turning the clock back 250 years. I was dumbfounded that we elected a con man for President and the exposure of the level of corruption within the other two branches of our government. Certainly people could see what was going on, correct? We cannot take for granted our right to vote, free speech, education, travel, worship, etc. and exist however we choose.
Democracy enshrines respect and extends dignity to every citizen, so it’s more than a structure for government-it’s a powerful moral construct that informs our identities. It’s certainly empowering to cast a vote: I feel it each Election Day, knowing that the vote of a person of little influence (mine) counts exactly as much as the most wealthy and powerful. And it’s also incredibly humbling to see the electoral outcomes from a land of so many differing perspectives. No one idea can be forced on the whole, regardless how convinced people are of its rightness. This gives me hope for a future, however threatened. I’ve spent a lifetime trusting in the wisdom of the masses. As long as we retain the means to vote, democracy will survive.
Democracy is all I have ever known. My parents came from india when I was 7 years old for better economic opportunities. For me growing up and learning American History and world history I truly believe that democracy with all its flaws is the best form of government.
I will never understand people that yearn for the dictator to get things done. Maybe they believe that the dictator will always go after their perceived enemies and not just anyone.
Democracy matters to me because I do not believe that anyone is above the law and society should not be ruled by people who believe they (are superior to everyone else/chosen by God/ endowed/etc).
Democracy matters to me, not only because it's all I've ever known, but because, from a very young age, I have always believed that everyone is fundamentally equal and that everyone's voice deserves to be heard, even those with whom I don't agree. I sincerely believe that we all matter (except for a very small few who do and say awful things and who I do not feel are redeemable.) I believe in balance, and I believe in collaboration.
I've seen the alternative, and none of those options are good for humanity. Extremes always fail, and I say this as someone who is NOT a centrist!
Freedom is subjective but, in a community, self determination is self regulation.
I've been an American for 70 years. I've voted in every election from 1972 through 2022. I've served in the military (1972 - 1973, Viet Nam). I've traveled fairly broadly as a civilian, and lived urban and rural in eight states. I have never lived in a nation where rule was overtly fascist but, I believe, I have more than a rudimentary intelligence and empathy. Human nature is universal.
We are a species of primate mammal which first appeared approximately 250,000 years ago. We all have opposable thumbs, generally walk on two legs, and typically have some language skills. We come in a wide range of colors but are not as colorful as most avian, or ocean dwelling creatures. The only thing that differentiates us from most other mammals is our innate concept of self and, by extension, self importance.
Some of us understand the value of community and socialization better than others. In my opinion and experience, democracy is the keystone of self determination. Like our fellow mammals, few or us thrive all alone. We can function in a community if we respect our fellow primates and, if we are lucky and work for it, even love.
Democracy is the keystone of the highest form of a society.
Without a functioning democracy we are rendered less then the "simplest" organisms.
In Canada, Democracy is not only a parliamentary system of government, but of societal system made up of norms that promote inclusive approach and respect for individual differences, diversity and the rights bestowed to its citizenry including those who seek refuge in my country. It means that we all play a role in the pluralistic society in which we live, and where everyone is given the basic necessities of life - a safe environment, health care, social support system and access to the educational opportunities required for a successful and prosperous life.
Many years ago, i lived in a small town that could have easily been a Norman Rockwell Saturday Evening Post cover. About 10 miles to the south of that little town was a small black community. The kids who lived there were bussed to a school 17 miles to the North of my town. For a senior term paper, I did a little digging and discivered the cost and operating expense of that bus, compared it to the increased expense of including those kids in already existing bus routes and bringing them to our school. I made only slight reference to the educational/emotional price those kids had to pay for the nearly 60 mile round trip those kids had to endure every day. A few days after I turned it in, I was called into the principal's office, and confronted with the paper, told in no uncertain terms that this sort of research was unacceptable, none of my business. I was awarded a passing grade, but my paper was destroyed and I was told to keep my thoughts on that topic to myself. My parents, who were unaware of the topic of my research paper of were told that I had taken an interest in a topic that was not my concern.
While that was a relatively minor incident, it did get me thinking about the far more repressive regimes in which so many of our fellow humans live.
I've since met people from countries with such regimes. They've told me of large and small incidents that were hard to listen to.
Unfortunately, I now see this country flirting with slipping into a similar Orwellian/Oceanian future. Frightening.
As messy, sometimes painful, sometimes uneven, sometimes unjust, as democracy is, it has the possibility of improvement if we work at it. The repressive, perhaps theocratic regime too many seem to desire lacks that possibility, promising only a deepening downward spiral where only the most privileged reap the benefits of that society.
As the air we breathe, many of us have always expected democracy to be there as well. Long ago, we were active in campaigning for environmental issues and there has been much progress, our air is better, but not enough. As we now know, our earth's climate is at a tipping point. Unfortunately, too many of us do not see that our democracy is at it's tipping point as well. One thing that is overlooked by many in the environmental movement is that without a democracy to evaluate and act upon those issue of great concerne, there will be NO action on our climate or any other environmental issue.
The constant clamering for more money to save this or that beautiful whatever must be channeled into screaming loudly to all their members and all on their mailing lists to "SAVE DEMOCRACY NOW!" and contribute to those who can save it and make their advertizing prioritize it too. We all must reach those with thousands of contacts to do this. It can be non-partisan, to save their tax exempt status.
The Cold War era has NOT ended, but the U.S. government sponsored propaganda told the western world that it stopped in the 1990s. We let our guard down folks and have been vulnerable. Nothing changed for Putin, who was a KGB spy stationed in Germany during the 1990s. He then became the President of the largest nation on the globe. He blames the U.S. for the fall of the Soviet Union, and has sworn to destroy our democracy at all costs. In 1997, a book surfaced in Russia called The Foundations of Geopolitics. This book was primarily authored by several Russian Army Generals, but Putin was proposed to be the ghost writer since it outlines his plans as the 2nd President of Russia. Yeltsin was dying due to alcohol consumption and Putin was named as the Prime Minister. This book is about 600 pages. It discusses the following: the destruction of the United States, the war in Ukraine and the absorption of this land back into Russia, world domination, re-establish a pre-NATO world order, Brexit, partnership with France and Germany, and Russian military post-communism. Most of the steps outlined in this book have been realized or are in various development stages. We have less than one year to reverse Putin's 23 years of infiltration and destruction of our way of life. www.democracy2020.org. Elizabeth Graham
I’m from Ireland and immigrated to the USA 22 years ago, aged 42. I’ve known and worked with many people from authoritarian countries and have spent time in a few. I really value being able to choose those who govern and to repeat that regularly based on how well they’ve done in office. The system is imperfect, often electing crooks and clowns, however, freedom is not to be undervalued. I particularly love the freedom of religion, to believe in whatever religion you want or to not believe in any. The American example of that really shone out for me when reading about Roger Williams in a book by John Barry - especially when he paddled many miles in his canoe to debate a Quaker leader, when Quakers were the most hated group of all. That openness to consider others free to believe what they want is impressive and critically important.
You can't blame them. Most of the voters have never lived in a country that wasn't a democracy. They don't know what it's like to drive your family for their weekend outing to the beach in Libya in 1977. Then suddenly to be stopped by a barbed wire fence stretching 1000 miles to prevent an imaginary coastline invasion from Egypt.
They can't imagine stopping at a checkpoint and having military rifles pointing in at your family. Or sitting at a lunch counter in Tripoli while Col Ghadafi is taking his favorite dictater, Idi Amin,"the Butcher of Uganda" for a tour of the city when suddenly a bullet whizzes past and lodges in the wall near me.
In both situations, what did I do? Nothing! How did I feel? Helpless and scared.
If you don't vote Blue in 2024. That is how you will feel for the rest of your life: I promise you!
Thank you for your comment. I acknowledge the right of every person to express their opinions.However, I do not accept nor give weight to claims of patriotism from others, like Trump, who not only dodged the draft, he unashamedly scorned and laughed at those like John Mc Cain and others who not only suffered, but lost their lives such as those buried in the Normandy Memorial Cemetery and here in the Arlington Cemetery.
Democracy matters because of what it has accomplished and can continue to accomplish for citizens. There truly is no form of government other than democracy whose sole purpose is the achievement of the common good.
Thomas Zimmer wrote in his 12/27 Democracy Americana (Substack) piece: "An egalitarian multiracial, pluralistic democracy in which an individual’s status was not determined to a large degree by race, gender, religion, or wealth has never been achieved anywhere. Therein lies the challenge, the danger – but also the very real chance of making the leap to becoming the kind of country America has long promised to be, but never has been yet."
That sums it up for me. I'd like to know that 2024 was the moment we as a country (as an example for the world) faced the challenge and the danger, and embraced the chance to make that leap.
What "Democracy" means to me is an ideal we have yet to attain, and every time I think we're moving forward? We seem to skitter back even more quickly!
- In 1863, before The Civil War was even over, Reconstruction started in the United States—it ended with the Inauguration of Rutherford B. Hayes in 1877, which began nearly a century of "legal" suppression of Black Rights in the South known as the "Jim Crow" Era.
- From the Freedom Riders' protests against segregated Interstate buses in 1961 up to LBJ signing the Voting Rights Act in 1965, Blacks and Northern Whites risked their lives to draw attention to pervasive Black disenfranchisement in the South. In the past decade the Far Right (and corrupt!) Supreme Court has slowly chipped away at that Act, beginning with the "Shelby Decision" in 2013.
- In 2008, the U.S. voted for its first non-White President with a non-White name, Barack Hussein Obama. His Presidency was plagued with increases in anti-Black violence and Republicans starting to "say the quiet part out loud"—culminating in the Presidency of Donald James Trump, who bellowed the quiet part and encouraged his "Make America Great Again" base of Religious Right Bigots to do the same!
I'm writing about Black history because it's the story everybody's the most aware of. I know I could write similar lists about women, about LGBTQ people, about the Latinx Americans, about the First Nations who we keep screwing over, about Middle Easterners, about Asians—pretty much, about anybody who's not Straight, White, and Male. You know it, I know it, and yet still it goes on as we pretend that it somehow...doesn't.
So what does Democracy mean to me? It's something we need to maintain those parts which we have now, so we can expand it to include ALL Americans in ALL things—including, in the case of Trump MAGAts, the right to be treated the way they want to treat those groups not them!
*Selah*—it's a Hebrew word that means a number of things, but most importantly for me, it means "Pause, and Consider".
Education is paramount. We of the "oldest generation" understand the value of democracy. Unfortunately, like most humans, we tend to imagine that everyone understands what is obvious to us. We tend to forget that young people start from scratch in their understanding of the world.
We need to engage a major program to inculcate youth as to history and what is at stake. I don't want to imply "indoctrination" although such a program engender such criticism. I don't claim to know that very best form of government. But I do know that Very Powerful People control vast global resources - to the detriment of people in general - and they will fight to maintain such power. It must be recognized and countered effectively. Some things are truly self-evident.
Bill Browder's two books on his experience with Putin describe the structure and methods of Russia's oligarchy. These methods are strikingly similar to biological parasitism. Putin and his oligarchs are attached to the Russian government and citizens like a parasite to its host.
Three of the categories of biological interaction can be used to describe the interactions of humans in groups. Mutualism (mutually beneficial symbiosis). Parasitism (parasite & host). Predation (predator & prey).
A viable Democratic Republic, like the United States of America, relies on the good faith, mutually beneficial, interactions (symbiosis) among individuals. Citizens vote for representatives who they believe will govern the city/state/nation in their interests. These representatives must moderate their behavior, aligned with a foundation of morals/virtues, to avoid causing harm to the state. Good faith requires a concern over the "means" rather than just the "ends". Good faith also requires that we treat each other with respect. Which we Americans are well known for. This is a long term governing structure.
A viable Oligarchy (Putin's Russia) relies on the ability of the parasite to control its host, by whatever means necessary. There is no "good faith" or "bad faith". Just a practical strategy to milk the host without killing it. Analysts in London estimate that Putin and his parasitical organization has removed $1 Trillion from the Russian people and invested this ill-gotten money in assets, of all kinds, in the West. Where their property ownership rights are protected by law. To survive/thrive the parasite must convince the majority of individuals in their society to comply with it's dictates. Propaganda. Media control. Threats of imprisonment and violence. This is a medium term governing structure. Eventually the host will throw off the parasite.
A viable Nazism relies on predation. The predatory group attains governmental power (by any means, legal and illegal) and uses this power to control and oppress its citizens and invade other states. This is a "bad faith" model because the predator must have no scruples to retain control and grow power. Agreements and contracts and treaties have no meaning. Back stabbing of allies. Torture. Mass murder. Invasion of neighbors. As we saw with Hitler's Nazi state, this is a short term governing structure.
Our founders were well aware of these human interaction models. The Constitution is their attempt to select Symbiosis, self-regulating self-rule, for the American model. "A Republic if we can keep it."
As caring citizens, we must be fully aware of the parasites and predators, who are striving every minute of every day, to take over control of our nation. And make each of us their host or prey.
The pundits who cite the rise and fall of democracies, and predict the end of the American experiment, fail to appreciate the benefits of "self governance" to the individual. Protections of personal freedom against an oppressive and corrupt central government. In order for totalitarian dictators to keep power, they must remove individual rights and institute control from the top (see Putin's declaration against Ukraine, denigrating Ukrainians' right to self-rule, for example).
A critical requirement for American Democracy to survive is to elect public servants who respect America's foundation and history. Reading Cassidy and Liz, there are 200+ House and Senate office holders who disrespect the Constitution and our founding principles. Violating their oath of office. Supporting Trump in the face of his obvious self-disqualification for any public office.
Today media pundits fail to remind everyone that there is no "right" to run for public office. Unqualified applicants for public offices are denied ballot access, by the appropriate authorities, all the time, and should be. This case is no different. By his own actions, Trump disqualified himself from future public office. Period.
As one of the lucky Americans who has grown up without the troubles others in the world and even in our own country, have endured for their whole lives and for generations uncounted, it took me a while to come to grips with the suffering and oppression I've been spared by my extremely fortunate upbringing. I now see that oppression and how it's shaped and shortened the lives of so many millions and billions, and I still weep for its victims.
I don't have a story of hardship to share, and I won't pretend my little problems compare to those of the world's forgotten and marginalized peoples, but I will say that I know there is hope. The alarm bells we hear about the threats democracy faces in the US and around the world are loud right now, because we are on the verge of the US becoming a truly multiracial, multicultural democracy, and those who would prevent that are currently working as hard as they can to cling to power, because they know that once they lose it, they will never get it back.
Democracy is critical to the well-being of the world, and it is up to us to keep it healthy.
For me, democracy is the embodiment of the creative genius of diversity put to work for the common good. We’ve forgotten that “the common good” is the root of our constitutional democracy.
I was raised to believe that being American means being inclusive, having our justice system apply to everyone without favor, living with democratic ideals and compromise, and that voting is a sacred right and duty. Obviously I have been disillusioned on some of these points, and I wonder how other people got such a different view of what America stands for. I’m still fighting for the ideals I was raised with.
Democracy to me means the ability to have an opinion that means something to me and others while attempting to be respectful and understanding of different opinions. By voting for people who are aligned with your own interests and values.
I lived and worked in dictator-led countries for about 20 years. This includes Russia and Central Asia (6 countries). I know what it feels like to have NO civil or legal rights, and as a foreigner you could be incarcerated or murdered at any time for any drummed-up reason. It develops a deep understanding and love for freedom, democracy, and justice. I wrote From Democracy to Democrazy to better inform Americans of the truth. While the American media (and public) spotlight, ever enthralled by the sensationalism of Trump's legal woes - which are are justified and based on true evidence - remains fixated on these trails, a crucial and overlooked danger continues to unfold. The influence of Putin's strategies quietly attempts to reshape the trajectory of American politics. He blames the U.S. for the downfall of the Soviet Union, and wishes to destroy our democracy from within. He is succeeding. WE SEE THIS HAPPENING NOW! www.democrazy2020.org
I'm just going to add that as a daughter of Holocaust survivors who were slaves for 5 yrs at the Ghetto Lodz Slave Labor Camp who came to America in 1949 (I was their "anchor baby"born in 1951) & they became citizens in 1954- I will never give up on America & Democracy
Dad was in the Resistance & tho it took 15 yrs-He eventually went to Germany to testify against some SS officers -We must have justice & accountability for our democracy to survive
I fear my white son has been taken in by victim-speak on various current podcasts. And I have no more influence over him. He is 26, a man, not college educated, works among the white working class men in manufacturing, and living more than 2000 miles from me. He was once a clear-headed, intuitive, kind young man. Now he believes he is not making enough money and I think he thinks the orange man is the one working on his behalf, that perhaps he is the one who will keep him safe and taken care of. How has that lying sack o’ sh*t managed to hoodwink so many?! I think the Joe Rogans, Charlie Kirks, and the like are stealing our boys from right under our noses as a couple of my friends are experiencing the same thing. Somehow, Kyle Rittenhouse is a hero to some. How can that be?! There are so many anti-democracy outlets infiltrating every pocket around our dear country. ...and I haven’t even addressed the lack of freedom for my daughter’s reproductive health. All this to say, I hold our democracy sacred and it simply cannot slip away! Like someone else said, I have children.
Democracy matters to us because its highest ideal and goal is to level the playing field and make opportunity and participation available to every voice in the nation equally. We are far from achieving this ideal, but Democracy is the only vehicle of which I'm aware that makes such qualities even a remote possibility. It is so worth fighting for and earning.
I'm going to let the fabulous 90 yo Eleanor Traylor explain what Democracy means to me:
“The language of banning the books, even the thought of it, betrays the birth narrative of this nation,”
.“It’s treasonous. You can’t ban thought. And that’s what books are.
You can’t ban speech.”
“This democracy is not perfect, but its ideal is exceptional,” she said, “and must be fought for and earned.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2023/12/29/traylor-book-banning-black-literature/
Simply put, I cherish democracy because I have children.
Democracy to me means the government is working for the people and by the people as it should. Our elected officials actually represent the people who put them there. It means that I can state my opinions without fear of being silenced. Democracy means ALL people are free to live their lives as they wish, unless it hurts others, in which case we have the rule of law that our county is based on. No one is above the law. Period. Democracy means freedom. Men and women have fought for it and lost their lives for it. It is something I took for granted. Never again will I do that. The thought of our country being run by a narcissistic sociopath scares me more than I can express.
Democracy matters because it’s the only thing that can save capitalism from its trajectory of excess and because the racial and cultural melting pot that is America is increasingly less dominated by white entitlement.
The only way our society and economy can survive the desperate attempts of white nationalists to impose a death grip on political power, allied with narcissistic billionaires all too ready to manipulate their fears of inevitable change is to constantly and consistently elevate democratic governance, the right of every American to vote and to have the majority prevail.
If we can preserve the right of every American to be heard at the ballot box, and commit that every election will be honored as the will of the people, we make persuasion, not violence and chaos, the road to safety and a secure future for everyone, even the losers of elections.
Democracy is important because it makes consultation, collaboration, and persuasion the routes to power, not the possession of lethal weapons and willingness to demonize and commit to violence against our fellow citizens.
The 2024 election in particular is our political tipping point. If we can’t use and accept the results of a democratic process to choose our path going forward as the cultural compromise of generations of immigrants, which America has always been, then our country is truly lost.
For all that is holy, please vote and make sure all your family members and friends do the same.
My feelings about democracy beautifully expressed by our oldest, still living president, Jimmy Carter:
“We have become not a melting pot but a beautiful mosaic. Different people, different beliefs, different yearnings, different dreams.”
—Jimmy Carter
My father and his seven brothers each served in our military during WORLD WAR II and Korea. My mother’s three brothers did likewise.
There was no doubt about my immediate future, I would serve in United States Air Force. In 1962, I only applied to colleges with AFROTC. In 1966, at a time in which we had a mandatory draft, I received my commission and subsequently served as a B-52 Navigator/Electronic Warfare Officer and subsequently flew missions in our Viet Nam Conflict before separating from the service in 1971.
With my VA educational benefits, thereafter I attended law school in a class with several Nam vets and became a licensed State of Texas attorney in 1974. I practiced as a business, civil lawyer in Texas actively for 40 years.
These life experiences lead me to certain conclusions:
1. Every young man and woman should be required to serve our country either in the military or a Jimmy Carter style Peace Corp. to in effect earn their citizenship, learn the discipline to become a contributing adult nad receive appropriate educational and career training as well as medical benefits. Additionally, the exposure to and reliance upon persons of every race will mitigate racial disparities and prejudices.
2. Create a professional federally staffed election process to control, fund and sanction all elected offices from school boards to the President.
3. Abolish the Citizens United decision and regulate as well as fund the financial aspects of the voting process to mitigate the control of large donors, individual or corporate have on the selection of candidates for public office.
I full well realize that these are difficult goals to achieve, however they are neither impossible nor to accomplish in the whole and some exist or have existed and simply require the will, fortitude and heart to enact or revive.
If we fail to make an effort to deliver a fair and just political system as opposed to the current future of a divided, I’ve got mine, and I want more of yours approach Trump offers as our political system of government, this nation will cease to exist before the end of my fifteen year old grandson’s lifetime, if not mine.
I'm lucky. I have a member of Congress representing me that I like and admire, and who I'm happy to vote for. Not everyone is so lucky. But even if I weren't, I'd want the right to vote anyway -- to vote him out. I think that's the essence of democracy: that we choose who represents us in government. That's why I always vote in every election. That's why I support the right of every citizen to vote. It's why I'm a Democrat.
As a 16 years old HS junior, I’ll admit to studying U.S. history but never thought much about my personal freedom and how that relates to our government and legislators, judges and presidents. But as an 80 year old I have seen and heard about other citizens here at home and in other countries and am grateful to be an American citizen. It’s important that as citizens we follow the elections and those running for office so that our government take care of ALL our citizens.
This country for which my distant paternal grandfather fought during the American Revolutionary War is defined as a democratic republic. Each person is equal to the other. That fact continues to be in tension, with backlash against minorities becoming more virulent. We have continued to serve since then.
To me, "democracy" in the U.S. means being able to be free to be me, within the confines of law. It is the promise of liberty; liberty and justice for all, equally applied. Yet, we know full well "equally applied" is a myth. We know that our system of laws as applied is two-tiered: One rule of law for the rich and powerful; a second rule of law for the rest of us. Certain groups are working feverishly to take away our rights. Groups such as Alliance Defending Freedom, Moms for Liberty, The Federalist Society, Heritage Foundation, and others are pushing to constrain individual freedoms. They hide under the veil of lies and deception, using clever words to conceal their inner evil. They are anti-minority, anti-LGBTQ, and even anti-women. Yes! Women continue to be oppressed by men (and, sadly some women). Those men know little to nothing about women's bodies. Autocratic authoritarianism is "right around the corner". I am of the mind that what is my business is my business and what is your business is your business. The constraint on that premise is: So long as there is no abuse, physical or psychological. We take our democracy for granted. The enemy who walks among us and stalks us wants to take that away. "They" have no greater rights than you or I. That is the way of a democracy. Yet, their objective is to destroy the democracy that benefits them and allows them to openly defile and defy the country which we hold near and dear.
The fact that you are even raising the question speaks volumes about where we are, currently, as a nation. The question will be on the ballot in November; millions of so-called Americans will vote to repeal the vision of our Founders. But millions more (MORE), understanding the stakes, will vote in their favor. The coalition of refugee Republicans and independents with the Democratic Party (see: Liz Cheney) will be a key, and helpful moving forward. And let's not kid ourselves, those favoring the worst form of fascism as articulated by Caligula are not going to cry "uncle."
I am a Baby Boomer who has travelled and read, because I could. Happy New Year, I pray, and keep up the good work.
This country and our example throughout the world are precious. We smear it, harm it, degrade it, and cast it aside without a second thought at our peril. Without the strong institutions we have, without an experienced, compassionate leader to guide us in our behavior and deeds across the country and world, America will shrivel to a sad, darkened, and weak bastion of self-centered autocrats. Democracy provides the best hope for individual self-actualization and progress for a country composed of strong, accomplished individuals who will make America once again the envy of the world by example, not by bullying.
Dear Steve and Others: Our country is in serious trouble and we are "out-matched" in this struggle. For the past 23 years - since Putin assumed power of Russia - his number one goal has been the destruction of the United States from within. The tools he is using include our racism, antisemitism, violence, cyber attacks, and the manipulation and control of Trump - a man who was easily swayed by KGB invitations of wine, women, flattery, and money. Even as far back as 2008, Trump Jr. commented in a conference that a large percent of the Trump Empire money comes from Russia. After he declared 4 bankruptcies, Trump turned to Russia for income (U.S. banks refused to work with Trump) and they happily used his dire need for more and more money to control him and to funnel black cash into the U.S. - millions upon millions of dollars. This influx of black cash depletes and hurts our economy. The Russians also loaned $9.8 million to Marie LePen in France. She is the French presidential contender. It is all about control and threats. Look at the facts. Trump jumped through hoops to please Putin. He withdrew U.S. troops from Germany and other vital parts of the world like Syria and Lebanon. He signed a deal with the Taliban in Afghanistan, and within days of the American troop withdrawal - the Taliban again took control of this country and the democratic elected President fled for his life. Vital top secret military information has just disappeared and most likely is now in Moscow. Stalin was perhaps the worse dictator to ever rule. It is estimated that he killed at least 20 million people. This is relevant because Putin is compared to Stalin, and Trump has emulated and praised Putin. If Trump is re-elected, our democracy will die. This means each of us will no longer be able to freely write blogs and substack messages that mention Trump. This means that there will no longer be free elections. This means that Trump will continue to threaten every elected official in D.C. and other locations. It is called a DICTATORSHIP and not a Democracy when a leader threatens elected officials so they do as he wishes. This is how the DUMA in Moscow works, and it was how the Republican US Congress operated when Trump was living in the WH. Read: From Democracy to Democrazy to better understand the facts and learn about the proof of what is happening in our country. www.democrazy2020.org We have one year in order to detox the brainwashed Republicans and educate the voting public about Trump's connections to Russia.
As a teenager I lived for several years in a country taken over by a military junta. Stupidly I felt somewhat shielded from their actions because of my American citizenship, despite the the fact that I witnessed the oppression all around me. The silences in public with my friends who were vulnerable, the protective instinct to keep them from arbitrary harassment. The imprisonment of some.
It’s freedom, and I am reminded of the price we paid throughout our US history for this freedom every time I visit Arlington national cemetery, where my parents are buried, I see the acres of headstones identifying those brave men and women who gave their lives to protect this freedom.
Democracy matters to me because of its freedoms and civil rights but also because it allows me to be part of the game, so to speak. I attended Hampshire College whose motto is ‘To know is not Enough’ and I take that edict seriously! The opportunity to volunteer and be part of the über democratic ‘Town Meeting’ way of governance in my MA town is amazing. Everyone has a chance to vote on most decisions and volunteer on committees that really work effectively to get things done. Although sometimes flawed, being able to participate and help make a difference in a concerted and organized system of local governance is one of the many things that makes a democracy great!
Local is Universal!
Whenever I travel to DC, I always try to visit Arlington National Cemetary. It's like a pilgrimage for me. Amidst that beautiful and touching place, the highlight for me is watching the Changing of the Guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. I'm always awe-struck by the precision and grace of the ceremony, and the reverence and hush that befalls the spectators. Particularly when I see foreign visitors standing there in rapt awe, this always stirs my soul with a deep love for our nation and our founding values. I guess you could call it a quiet form of patriotism.
I would normally respond with some high-minded, aspirational observations, as I suspect many of your readers will. Our tribe is as such. But my immediate reaction is more personal, and I suspect that true democracy is more intimate and less theoretical than we often make it. Grittier and less eloquent. Close up and personal. So, at least for today, my answer is that its value is proportional to its cost.
My dad was a plainspoken boy from the high plains of New Mexico. A dust bowl boy. He went into the CCC in Albuquerque, then the NM National Guard. Was called up early in 1941 and sent to the Philippines. The war came for him on December 8, 1941. He was captured on Bataan in March ‘42. Force marched, wounded and sick with malaria, to the notorious Cabanatuan POW camp. Shipped to Japan a year later, where he was a slave laborer in the coal mines at Camp Fukuoka #7. Finally liberated after the war ended in 1945, he came home slowly through a few different repatriation hospitals. He weighed 87 pounds. Suffered from the effects of starvation, beatings, beriberi, malaria, and tropical ulcers. He never really recovered.
Thats the price that a boy from the high mesa country paid for me to be free and to live in a country free from tyrants, where my vote counts and my kids, too, can live in a free and democratic country.
I can’t pay him back for that extraordinary sacrifice. He died 35 years ago. But I can pay it forward. Democracy is our birthright, bought and paid for dearly not only by patriots and heroes, but by ordinary men and women who secure it with a ballot when they can, or a bullet if they must.
A former president once observed that if we don’t fight like hell we’re not going to have a country anymore. It’s the only true thing ever to come out of his mouth.
FIGHT!!!
Freedom
PS I like all your relevant historical facts! They make me look smart when I use them at dinner party discussions 😀
Thank you Steve. We have less than one year to educate the American public about the realities of life in a dictatorship. Mass mind manipulation (aka brainwashing) was used extensively by Trump. It was started a century ago in totalitarian countries, and used extensively in China, Germany, Austria, Italy, and a host of other dictator-led countries. Lo and behold, it is now found in the United States and used by Trump every time he opens his mouth. Brainwashing is defined as telling lies over and over until it is perceived as the truth. Once convinced, a person no longer has independent thought. If the lies also contain hatred, it releases a chemical in the brain that may result in violence. We saw this on January 6th. Millions of Americans have been exposed to Trump's lies and brainwashing. Hitler changed an entire country from a peaceful nation to mass murderers and about 7 million humans were tortured and murdered. Stalin killed at least 20 million people. Putin is catching up to Stalin with his invasion and war in Ukraine. Trump killed over one million Americans with his deceptive approach to Covid. We are in trouble, and people do not realize it. I was at a book signing event at a Barnes and Noble for my book called From Democracy to Democrazy (by Graham). A middle-aged woman came up to me and said: "I believe Putin is a great leader." I was so shocked that I opened my mouth but nothing came out. This is word-by-word exactly what Trump had said on TV only a week before. Our country is facing it's demise from it's own citizens and most Republicans do not have a clue what is about to happen or why. I am scared. Elizabeth
As a side note, I am starting a Substack in January named after the book: From Democracy to Democrazy. It is a small attempt to provide facts and figures to better educate our citizens about the stark reality of what Trump plans and why.
Democracy is freedom to live our lives as we choose within the boundaries of lawful expression and dissent. It is far from perfect but it’s the best system we have and it’s worth fighting for.
I am truly saddened and horrified that our country is on the precipice of turning the clock back 250 years. I was dumbfounded that we elected a con man for President and the exposure of the level of corruption within the other two branches of our government. Certainly people could see what was going on, correct? We cannot take for granted our right to vote, free speech, education, travel, worship, etc. and exist however we choose.
Democracy enshrines respect and extends dignity to every citizen, so it’s more than a structure for government-it’s a powerful moral construct that informs our identities. It’s certainly empowering to cast a vote: I feel it each Election Day, knowing that the vote of a person of little influence (mine) counts exactly as much as the most wealthy and powerful. And it’s also incredibly humbling to see the electoral outcomes from a land of so many differing perspectives. No one idea can be forced on the whole, regardless how convinced people are of its rightness. This gives me hope for a future, however threatened. I’ve spent a lifetime trusting in the wisdom of the masses. As long as we retain the means to vote, democracy will survive.
Democracy is all I have ever known. My parents came from india when I was 7 years old for better economic opportunities. For me growing up and learning American History and world history I truly believe that democracy with all its flaws is the best form of government.
I will never understand people that yearn for the dictator to get things done. Maybe they believe that the dictator will always go after their perceived enemies and not just anyone.
Democracy matters to me because I do not believe that anyone is above the law and society should not be ruled by people who believe they (are superior to everyone else/chosen by God/ endowed/etc).
Because as flawed as democracy can be, the negative consequences of other forms of rule/government/politics have been all too often demonstrated.
Democracy matters to me, not only because it's all I've ever known, but because, from a very young age, I have always believed that everyone is fundamentally equal and that everyone's voice deserves to be heard, even those with whom I don't agree. I sincerely believe that we all matter (except for a very small few who do and say awful things and who I do not feel are redeemable.) I believe in balance, and I believe in collaboration.
I've seen the alternative, and none of those options are good for humanity. Extremes always fail, and I say this as someone who is NOT a centrist!
Democracy is the keystone of self determination.
Freedom is subjective but, in a community, self determination is self regulation.
I've been an American for 70 years. I've voted in every election from 1972 through 2022. I've served in the military (1972 - 1973, Viet Nam). I've traveled fairly broadly as a civilian, and lived urban and rural in eight states. I have never lived in a nation where rule was overtly fascist but, I believe, I have more than a rudimentary intelligence and empathy. Human nature is universal.
We are a species of primate mammal which first appeared approximately 250,000 years ago. We all have opposable thumbs, generally walk on two legs, and typically have some language skills. We come in a wide range of colors but are not as colorful as most avian, or ocean dwelling creatures. The only thing that differentiates us from most other mammals is our innate concept of self and, by extension, self importance.
Some of us understand the value of community and socialization better than others. In my opinion and experience, democracy is the keystone of self determination. Like our fellow mammals, few or us thrive all alone. We can function in a community if we respect our fellow primates and, if we are lucky and work for it, even love.
Democracy is the keystone of the highest form of a society.
Without a functioning democracy we are rendered less then the "simplest" organisms.
In Canada, Democracy is not only a parliamentary system of government, but of societal system made up of norms that promote inclusive approach and respect for individual differences, diversity and the rights bestowed to its citizenry including those who seek refuge in my country. It means that we all play a role in the pluralistic society in which we live, and where everyone is given the basic necessities of life - a safe environment, health care, social support system and access to the educational opportunities required for a successful and prosperous life.
Many years ago, i lived in a small town that could have easily been a Norman Rockwell Saturday Evening Post cover. About 10 miles to the south of that little town was a small black community. The kids who lived there were bussed to a school 17 miles to the North of my town. For a senior term paper, I did a little digging and discivered the cost and operating expense of that bus, compared it to the increased expense of including those kids in already existing bus routes and bringing them to our school. I made only slight reference to the educational/emotional price those kids had to pay for the nearly 60 mile round trip those kids had to endure every day. A few days after I turned it in, I was called into the principal's office, and confronted with the paper, told in no uncertain terms that this sort of research was unacceptable, none of my business. I was awarded a passing grade, but my paper was destroyed and I was told to keep my thoughts on that topic to myself. My parents, who were unaware of the topic of my research paper of were told that I had taken an interest in a topic that was not my concern.
While that was a relatively minor incident, it did get me thinking about the far more repressive regimes in which so many of our fellow humans live.
I've since met people from countries with such regimes. They've told me of large and small incidents that were hard to listen to.
Unfortunately, I now see this country flirting with slipping into a similar Orwellian/Oceanian future. Frightening.
As messy, sometimes painful, sometimes uneven, sometimes unjust, as democracy is, it has the possibility of improvement if we work at it. The repressive, perhaps theocratic regime too many seem to desire lacks that possibility, promising only a deepening downward spiral where only the most privileged reap the benefits of that society.
That can't be allowed to happen here.
As the air we breathe, many of us have always expected democracy to be there as well. Long ago, we were active in campaigning for environmental issues and there has been much progress, our air is better, but not enough. As we now know, our earth's climate is at a tipping point. Unfortunately, too many of us do not see that our democracy is at it's tipping point as well. One thing that is overlooked by many in the environmental movement is that without a democracy to evaluate and act upon those issue of great concerne, there will be NO action on our climate or any other environmental issue.
The constant clamering for more money to save this or that beautiful whatever must be channeled into screaming loudly to all their members and all on their mailing lists to "SAVE DEMOCRACY NOW!" and contribute to those who can save it and make their advertizing prioritize it too. We all must reach those with thousands of contacts to do this. It can be non-partisan, to save their tax exempt status.
The Cold War era has NOT ended, but the U.S. government sponsored propaganda told the western world that it stopped in the 1990s. We let our guard down folks and have been vulnerable. Nothing changed for Putin, who was a KGB spy stationed in Germany during the 1990s. He then became the President of the largest nation on the globe. He blames the U.S. for the fall of the Soviet Union, and has sworn to destroy our democracy at all costs. In 1997, a book surfaced in Russia called The Foundations of Geopolitics. This book was primarily authored by several Russian Army Generals, but Putin was proposed to be the ghost writer since it outlines his plans as the 2nd President of Russia. Yeltsin was dying due to alcohol consumption and Putin was named as the Prime Minister. This book is about 600 pages. It discusses the following: the destruction of the United States, the war in Ukraine and the absorption of this land back into Russia, world domination, re-establish a pre-NATO world order, Brexit, partnership with France and Germany, and Russian military post-communism. Most of the steps outlined in this book have been realized or are in various development stages. We have less than one year to reverse Putin's 23 years of infiltration and destruction of our way of life. www.democracy2020.org. Elizabeth Graham
I’m from Ireland and immigrated to the USA 22 years ago, aged 42. I’ve known and worked with many people from authoritarian countries and have spent time in a few. I really value being able to choose those who govern and to repeat that regularly based on how well they’ve done in office. The system is imperfect, often electing crooks and clowns, however, freedom is not to be undervalued. I particularly love the freedom of religion, to believe in whatever religion you want or to not believe in any. The American example of that really shone out for me when reading about Roger Williams in a book by John Barry - especially when he paddled many miles in his canoe to debate a Quaker leader, when Quakers were the most hated group of all. That openness to consider others free to believe what they want is impressive and critically important.
You can't blame them. Most of the voters have never lived in a country that wasn't a democracy. They don't know what it's like to drive your family for their weekend outing to the beach in Libya in 1977. Then suddenly to be stopped by a barbed wire fence stretching 1000 miles to prevent an imaginary coastline invasion from Egypt.
They can't imagine stopping at a checkpoint and having military rifles pointing in at your family. Or sitting at a lunch counter in Tripoli while Col Ghadafi is taking his favorite dictater, Idi Amin,"the Butcher of Uganda" for a tour of the city when suddenly a bullet whizzes past and lodges in the wall near me.
In both situations, what did I do? Nothing! How did I feel? Helpless and scared.
If you don't vote Blue in 2024. That is how you will feel for the rest of your life: I promise you!
Thank you for your comment. I acknowledge the right of every person to express their opinions.However, I do not accept nor give weight to claims of patriotism from others, like Trump, who not only dodged the draft, he unashamedly scorned and laughed at those like John Mc Cain and others who not only suffered, but lost their lives such as those buried in the Normandy Memorial Cemetery and here in the Arlington Cemetery.
Democracy matters because of what it has accomplished and can continue to accomplish for citizens. There truly is no form of government other than democracy whose sole purpose is the achievement of the common good.
Thomas Zimmer wrote in his 12/27 Democracy Americana (Substack) piece: "An egalitarian multiracial, pluralistic democracy in which an individual’s status was not determined to a large degree by race, gender, religion, or wealth has never been achieved anywhere. Therein lies the challenge, the danger – but also the very real chance of making the leap to becoming the kind of country America has long promised to be, but never has been yet."
That sums it up for me. I'd like to know that 2024 was the moment we as a country (as an example for the world) faced the challenge and the danger, and embraced the chance to make that leap.
What "Democracy" means to me is an ideal we have yet to attain, and every time I think we're moving forward? We seem to skitter back even more quickly!
- In 1863, before The Civil War was even over, Reconstruction started in the United States—it ended with the Inauguration of Rutherford B. Hayes in 1877, which began nearly a century of "legal" suppression of Black Rights in the South known as the "Jim Crow" Era.
- From the Freedom Riders' protests against segregated Interstate buses in 1961 up to LBJ signing the Voting Rights Act in 1965, Blacks and Northern Whites risked their lives to draw attention to pervasive Black disenfranchisement in the South. In the past decade the Far Right (and corrupt!) Supreme Court has slowly chipped away at that Act, beginning with the "Shelby Decision" in 2013.
- In 2008, the U.S. voted for its first non-White President with a non-White name, Barack Hussein Obama. His Presidency was plagued with increases in anti-Black violence and Republicans starting to "say the quiet part out loud"—culminating in the Presidency of Donald James Trump, who bellowed the quiet part and encouraged his "Make America Great Again" base of Religious Right Bigots to do the same!
I'm writing about Black history because it's the story everybody's the most aware of. I know I could write similar lists about women, about LGBTQ people, about the Latinx Americans, about the First Nations who we keep screwing over, about Middle Easterners, about Asians—pretty much, about anybody who's not Straight, White, and Male. You know it, I know it, and yet still it goes on as we pretend that it somehow...doesn't.
So what does Democracy mean to me? It's something we need to maintain those parts which we have now, so we can expand it to include ALL Americans in ALL things—including, in the case of Trump MAGAts, the right to be treated the way they want to treat those groups not them!
*Selah*—it's a Hebrew word that means a number of things, but most importantly for me, it means "Pause, and Consider".
Education is paramount. We of the "oldest generation" understand the value of democracy. Unfortunately, like most humans, we tend to imagine that everyone understands what is obvious to us. We tend to forget that young people start from scratch in their understanding of the world.
We need to engage a major program to inculcate youth as to history and what is at stake. I don't want to imply "indoctrination" although such a program engender such criticism. I don't claim to know that very best form of government. But I do know that Very Powerful People control vast global resources - to the detriment of people in general - and they will fight to maintain such power. It must be recognized and countered effectively. Some things are truly self-evident.
Democracy means that my Thai-American grandchildren will still be welcome in America if they choose to spend time here as adults.
Bill Browder's two books on his experience with Putin describe the structure and methods of Russia's oligarchy. These methods are strikingly similar to biological parasitism. Putin and his oligarchs are attached to the Russian government and citizens like a parasite to its host.
Three of the categories of biological interaction can be used to describe the interactions of humans in groups. Mutualism (mutually beneficial symbiosis). Parasitism (parasite & host). Predation (predator & prey).
A viable Democratic Republic, like the United States of America, relies on the good faith, mutually beneficial, interactions (symbiosis) among individuals. Citizens vote for representatives who they believe will govern the city/state/nation in their interests. These representatives must moderate their behavior, aligned with a foundation of morals/virtues, to avoid causing harm to the state. Good faith requires a concern over the "means" rather than just the "ends". Good faith also requires that we treat each other with respect. Which we Americans are well known for. This is a long term governing structure.
A viable Oligarchy (Putin's Russia) relies on the ability of the parasite to control its host, by whatever means necessary. There is no "good faith" or "bad faith". Just a practical strategy to milk the host without killing it. Analysts in London estimate that Putin and his parasitical organization has removed $1 Trillion from the Russian people and invested this ill-gotten money in assets, of all kinds, in the West. Where their property ownership rights are protected by law. To survive/thrive the parasite must convince the majority of individuals in their society to comply with it's dictates. Propaganda. Media control. Threats of imprisonment and violence. This is a medium term governing structure. Eventually the host will throw off the parasite.
A viable Nazism relies on predation. The predatory group attains governmental power (by any means, legal and illegal) and uses this power to control and oppress its citizens and invade other states. This is a "bad faith" model because the predator must have no scruples to retain control and grow power. Agreements and contracts and treaties have no meaning. Back stabbing of allies. Torture. Mass murder. Invasion of neighbors. As we saw with Hitler's Nazi state, this is a short term governing structure.
Our founders were well aware of these human interaction models. The Constitution is their attempt to select Symbiosis, self-regulating self-rule, for the American model. "A Republic if we can keep it."
As caring citizens, we must be fully aware of the parasites and predators, who are striving every minute of every day, to take over control of our nation. And make each of us their host or prey.
The pundits who cite the rise and fall of democracies, and predict the end of the American experiment, fail to appreciate the benefits of "self governance" to the individual. Protections of personal freedom against an oppressive and corrupt central government. In order for totalitarian dictators to keep power, they must remove individual rights and institute control from the top (see Putin's declaration against Ukraine, denigrating Ukrainians' right to self-rule, for example).
A critical requirement for American Democracy to survive is to elect public servants who respect America's foundation and history. Reading Cassidy and Liz, there are 200+ House and Senate office holders who disrespect the Constitution and our founding principles. Violating their oath of office. Supporting Trump in the face of his obvious self-disqualification for any public office.
Today media pundits fail to remind everyone that there is no "right" to run for public office. Unqualified applicants for public offices are denied ballot access, by the appropriate authorities, all the time, and should be. This case is no different. By his own actions, Trump disqualified himself from future public office. Period.
As one of the lucky Americans who has grown up without the troubles others in the world and even in our own country, have endured for their whole lives and for generations uncounted, it took me a while to come to grips with the suffering and oppression I've been spared by my extremely fortunate upbringing. I now see that oppression and how it's shaped and shortened the lives of so many millions and billions, and I still weep for its victims.
I don't have a story of hardship to share, and I won't pretend my little problems compare to those of the world's forgotten and marginalized peoples, but I will say that I know there is hope. The alarm bells we hear about the threats democracy faces in the US and around the world are loud right now, because we are on the verge of the US becoming a truly multiracial, multicultural democracy, and those who would prevent that are currently working as hard as they can to cling to power, because they know that once they lose it, they will never get it back.
Democracy is critical to the well-being of the world, and it is up to us to keep it healthy.
For me, democracy is the embodiment of the creative genius of diversity put to work for the common good. We’ve forgotten that “the common good” is the root of our constitutional democracy.
I was raised to believe that being American means being inclusive, having our justice system apply to everyone without favor, living with democratic ideals and compromise, and that voting is a sacred right and duty. Obviously I have been disillusioned on some of these points, and I wonder how other people got such a different view of what America stands for. I’m still fighting for the ideals I was raised with.
Democracy to me means the ability to have an opinion that means something to me and others while attempting to be respectful and understanding of different opinions. By voting for people who are aligned with your own interests and values.