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DEMOCRACY IS THE BEST FORM OF GOVERNMENT

YES

1. Freedom
Democratic states nearly always have freer people than autocratic states. They obviously
have the right to vote for their government so by extension deciding the policy of their
nation and what their nation should be like. They have more freedom of speech and
expression than in autocracies. In particular they are free to criticise their own government.
People tend to have higher morale and a better quality of life when they feel like they have
basic human rights. Closely related is the ability of citizens to pursue economic gain. Unlike
socialist governments, democracies tend to promote benefits to private enterprises. Such
financial opportunity drives innovation and new business development.

OPPOSITION: Except for the freedom to choose the government there is no reason why
people cannot be as free under an autocracy as in a democracy.

2. Represents the people


The biggest virtue of Democracy is that it is government by the people for the people. The
government represents the views of the people who elect them and can throw them out if
the government does things that the people do not like. Unlike other forms of government
democracy is about the little man, everyone rather than the elite that are often
disconnected from how everyone else lives their lives.

OPPOSITION: Democracy does not do very well at representing the people. In first past the
post systems a government may not even have the support of a majority of those who voted
not even including that many will not have votes and many more will not have the vote. This
means that it is often a small minority of the population who determines which party gets in
to government. Once they are there they are rarely representative of the people as they
have several years to do what they like. Yes they need to think about re-election but that
simply means they need to do more that the people like than the people dislike (or else have
a good advertising campaign).

3. Better governance due to transparency


Democracy is as much about having checks and balances to the executive and having
transparency of decision-making as it is about elections and the populace throwing
governments out of power. In a democracy the parliament, the media and sometimes the
judiciary all keep an eye on the executive and what is being done with the peoples money.
They are therefore able to see if the executive is doing things that are detrimental to the
country, are immoral, or even illegal. This can then be brought to a halt. Even where such
actions are not visible on the surface there are separate institutions that have the power to
investigate the executive and watch any secret deals or actions that are going on away
from public view.

OPPOSITION: While this is mostly found in democracy it is not something that has to be
exclusive to democracies. Autocracies can potentially be transparent and have checks and
balances they however often do not simply because an autocracy often has the time, and
the willingness to use force to prevent these from occurring.
4. Respect of Human Rights
Democracy as much it is understood, is the government of the people, by the people and for
the people. If democracy is put at it appropriate performance, then, all facet of human rights
is respected. The citizens would have the rights to exercise freedom of speech concerning
the well-being of the populace in areas of the economy, education, health, infrastructural
development, etc.

OPPOSITION: It is impossible for a state to accommodate all conflicting views on a subject.


Thus, majority rule is practiced. This puts the rights of minorities into jeopardy.

5. Promotes Human Rights


As much as Democracy is understood, it is a government of the people, by the people and
for the people. The ability of the people to have a voice in the running of the State, in the
economy, health, education, infrastructural development, etc creates a bit-balanced
environment for governance to thrive; this can only be achieved in a democratic
governance.

OPPOSITION: -

6. Equality
Equality before the law essentially means that no person should be discriminated against
because of their race, wealth or connections. Similarly, these factors should not prevent any
person from being elected as an official representative of the people.

7. Promote Peace and Unity (safeguard freedom)


Democracy also seeks to safeguard freedom. As a political doctrine, it accepts the need for a
government but states that it is the job of the government to promote peace and unity. In
theory, democracy should be driven by public will, thereby eliminating the need for and
likelihood of sedition or revolution. As some have pointed out, however, at the enormous
scale of contemporary nations impedes true representation of every person's interests. Each
member of the United States House of Representatives, for example, is theoretically
responsible for safeguarding the interests of, on average, 710,787 people. For this reason, it
would be virtually impossible for all citizens to express their interests to their elected official.

8. Ability to Influence Laws and Policies through Election


A democracy gives citizens the ability to influence laws and policies through the election of
representatives. Through support of certain candidates and public communication, citizens
are able to influence the direction of economic, social and political values. Because of this
power in the hands of everyday citizens, the theoretical political control of the country lies
with the majority as opposed to a select few in power. If a single politician or a particular
party takes on too much power and control, the popular majority has the chance to vote
elected officials out of office. In fact, democratic governments often have systems in place to
moderate the power of individuals or branches of government.

9. Enhances dignity of citizens


The political scene of a country largely determines the quality of social life of its citizens. This
is where democracy rushes quite ahead of alternative forms of government. The strongest
argument in favor of democracy does not relate to what democracy does to the government
but to what democracy does to its citizens. Even if democracy leads to instability, even if it
may not bring better decisions and even if it does not stay accountable to people, it still
remains the best because it enhances the dignity of citizens. With democracy, come rights
and freedoms, equality and justice. Each individual, rich or poor has the same political
status. There are no restrictions on thoughts, beliefs, religious practices and expression.
Democracy is where every individual walks dignified and fearless with the head held high.

10. Real power is vested in the hands of the masses


Unlike a dictatorship/authoritarian regime where all power is concentrated in the hands of
the arbitrary ruler, democracy is one form of government that truly empowers the masses.
This is because, not someone else, but the masses govern themselves. While many say,
democracy provides the right to vote, I say it provides millions of citizens the POWER TO
VOTE. This is why the why the word people becomes so important in Abraham Lincolns
famous description of democracy as a government by the PEOPLE, of the PEOPLE and for
the PEOPLE. Often, people who enjoy it give little thought to it, but the people who do not
have any say in how they wish to be governed realize its real worth.

11. Rule of law prevails


Where democracy is the rule of the land, rule of law lingers in the air. In democracy, the law
is supreme and all the citizens are subjected to that law. Rich or poor are like and so are
mighty and weak. The decision given by the interpreters of law i.e. the courts is binding on
all the subjects, which includes the government. The amount of chaos and arbitrariness are
reduced in a lawful scenario. This is a result of a chief feature of democracy that establishes
independent institutions of judiciary, executive and legislation. Other government statures
may not have an independent judiciary or the legal framework may not be equally imposed
over all the citizens.

12. Representatives are accountable to the general public


Democracy can be called the best form of government for any country as no other form of
government can respond to the needs of the masses better than democracy. Non-
democratic governments also respond to people but a major influence on the nature and
spontaneity of this response is exerted by the wishes of the ruler. On the other hand,
democratic government always has to consider public demand and welfare above its own
ideology. At all times, the government is accountable to people and bound to explain its
decisions in favor of public interests.

13. Provides scope to correct ones mistakes


Though in a democracy, people take their own decisions by electing their own
representatives, there is no guarantee that decisions taken by the general public at the time
of elections prove to be right for the years to come. Sometimes, people may later realize
that they made a wrong choice. The best part of democracy is that such mistakes cannot
stay hidden for long and there is room for correction. When the representatives we elect
turn out to be corrupt or insensitive towards public sentiments, we can always vote for
better alternatives in the next general elections. If the rulers do not change their decisions,
we can change them. This is not possible in any other form of government.
14. Decision making is improvised
Democracy requires election of a legislative body whose members come from different
regions and communities belonging to the country. The number of members may vary
according to proportional representation of the countrys population. Any decision, before
being taken, is discussed among these members and suggestions come from different
sections of the society. Thus the decision making process is subjected to widespread
consultation within a democracy. This is unlike other government frameworks where lesser
number of people are consulted or a mere arbitrary decision is made. When more number
of people put their heads together, loopholes are easy to discover, solutions are varying in
nature and the quality of decision is better.

15. Ability to deal with conflicts in the most peaceful of manners


All large societies witness differences of interests as well as opinions among the different
sections of people comprising them. E.g. if we consider India, we may easily find sharp
differences between people belonging to different regions/ castes/ religions or speaking
different languages. The conflicting preferences of people may often lead to clashes which
are best solved in a democratic setup. No one emerges as a permanent winner or loser and
people learn to live peacefully with each other. In administrative structures other than
democracy, it will become a matter of power play where the more powerful group shall
dictate its terms to the less powerful one, leading to resentment and unhappiness.

16. Option for justified protest is open to all


This is one of the biggest marked differences between democracy and other forms of
governments. Authoritative regimes do not allow the masses to protest against the decisions
made by those in power. The people have to quietly bear the burden of the exploitative
rules of the powerful. If a revolutionary spark is noticed, it is brutally suppressed. However,
in democracy, people have the right to protest and express their views against the
government decisions publicly, as far as the law and order is maintained. A democratic
government can be pressurized by organizing people and putting forward protests and any
unjustified or cruel repression is legally dealt with.

17. Provides space for fair & healthy comparison


Democracy is built on the very pillar of fairness which gives it clear advantage over
alternative forms of government. In democracy, every citizen has a fair chance to come to
power. Every individual has one vote and every vote has equal value. The say of a slum
dweller in deciding the political future of the country is the same as that of a millionaire
industrialist. Free and fair elections are held from time to time under the supervision of an
independent body. A true democracy is a platform of healthy competition, not subjected to
muscle might or power play.

18. Introduces self-government at the very grass-root level


The essence of democracy is self-government. Democracy distributes administrative power
to lower levels up to the very grass root level of villages. Within a country, smaller
administrative boundaries are drawn which are further divided among different blocks, each
having its own self-government system. Though the smaller governments are subordinate to
the national government, they provide enough exposure, administrative power and
participation opportunity to people, increasing efficiency and in turn making the
government more accountable.
NO

1. Economic growth
Autocracies are better at big projects, they can get things done and as such they are likely to
be better at creating economic growth if they have the will. In an autocracy there are not
the avenues for dissent that can block building projects, the police or troops can be used to
clear protests that in the west would slow down large infrastructure projects. As a
consequence of this all the infrastructure that is needed to create a modern economy can be
produced quicker and cheaper than would be the case in a democracy. Also the resource
base of the country can be accessed faster (no pesky environmentalists preventing drilling
and mining!) and used more efficiently.

OPPOSITION: This is not the case. The most developed and richest countries are all
democracies. While they may well have been developing their democracies during their
initial industrialisation democracy and the freedom it brings is increasingly necessary for
economic growth once the country has moved to being mostly dependent upon services
rather than manufacturing or natural resource exploitation for economic growth. Once this
occurs then creativity becomes important and the freedoms associated with democracy are
needed to foster this creativity that is needed for industries such as information technology,
creative arts, research and development etc.

2. Increasingly about money


In some countries democracy seems to be increasingly about money. The U.S. is the obvious
example where millions are spent on elections with big events and glitzy advertising
campaigns. This is not what democracy should be about and it discourages other countries
from moving along the path to democracy. Indeed it undermines the very idea of
democracy. Democracy when money is involved to the extent that it is in the U.S.A. becomes
elitist and corporatist because only the elite and rich businessmen can afford to fund the
campaigns for congress let alone for the presidency. The 2008 campaign for the White
House cost $1.6 billion and the whole 2008 election including senate and house of
representatives races cost $5.3 billion. Autocracies obviously avoid this immense expense by
avoiding elections.

OPPOSITION: -

3. Electorate is not motivated


You can drag the electorate to the ballot box if you like but you cannot make them
interested in most of the topics. It's an idea that seems appealing if you are one of those
people who is interested (I would love it), but if you try to discuss political issues with most
people they either change the subject or nod politely without comment. A lot of people are
also keen to express their views, but clearly haven't done any research into their validity. An
elected representative can take more time to consider the idea, discuss it with peers, and
explain themselves if it is contrary to popular opinion. Of course, most politicians are
weasels and will support popular opinion over educated opinion, but the result of this is no
worse than direct democracy.
OPPOSITION: -

4. Ignorance by voters
Democracy is about given all people a stake in the government as in a democracy the
legitimacy of the government comes from its ability to respond to the needs of its voters.
When the vote is limited, the government often ignores the needs of those who don't have
the right to vote unless they cause trouble. Even if someone is uneducated as to how politics
work, there are issues which directly affect them which they understand very well. Taking
away their right to vote would remove their ability to act in their best interest and have
government respond to their concerns. A person might not know the name of their
representative, but they might, for example, care a lot about the placement of new prison
near their home. Giving them the opportunity to voice their opinion through the
representative they elect or a referendum allows the government to hear and address their
concerns and create a solution which is suitable for everyone, not just a selected few.
Regardless of education and interest level, no single person can know everything about
every issue facing the country. All voters vote with a certain level of ignorance about the
issues. However, by forcing candidates to seek public approval they are forced to attempt to
educate the voters and give them the information they need to make an informed choice,
that way producing a more politically literate population. Removing the right to vote also
removes the incentive to inform the politic about how politics work as well as the incentive
to become informed, creating an even more ignorant society. When the right to vote is
removed, the only way for citizens to effectively petition the government is through
disruptive actions such as strikes, protests, and possibly violence. Disruptive actions can
carry significant costs which are eliminated when people are allowed initiate change through
voting. Having uninformed voters is a minor problem compared to the alternative.

5. Abuse of power
The best form of government is republican aristocracy combined with a degree of
democracy that limits capricious abuse of power. The Founding Fathers in the US basically
got it right. An elite body (the Senate, elected by state legislatures) should be combined with
a democratic body (the House), and the president should be elected by an elite body, which
is in turn democratically elected. The 19th-century system produced better results than the
more democratic system that Progressivism created in the early 20th century. For instance,
real hourly wages havent risen in fifty years (the stagnation began within 50 years of the
institution of Progressivism), and College students cant find decent jobs any more. The
increasing degree of democracy has caused these outcomes because it has permitted the
free play of special interests, ranging from industry lobbies, banking lobbies, the health care
lobby and the legal lobby to the Service Employees International Union, and government
workers.

6. Limitations of democracy
Democracy poses some limits on both of these objects (1) effective strategy and efficient
management and (2) limitation on the threat of capricious abuse of power. but de
Tocqueville observed that it does little to prevent tyranny and isnt very good at being well
run.

QUOTES (NO)
Democracy is not freedom. Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what to eat for
lunch. Freedom comes from the recognition of certain rights which may not be taken, not
even by a 99% vote. Marvin Simkin

We are a Republican Government. Real liberty is never found in despotism or in the


extremes of Democracy It has been observed that a pure democracy if it were practicable
would be the most perfect government. Experience has proved that no position is more false
than this. The ancient democracies in which the people themselves deliberated never
possessed one good feature of government. Their very character was tyranny; their figure
deformity. Alexander Hamilton

Democracy never lasts long. It soon wastes, exhausts, and murders itself. There never was a
democracy yet that did not commit suicide. John Adams, 2nd President of the United
States

Democracies have ever been spectacles of turbulence and contention; have ever been
found incompatible with personal security or the rights of property; and have in general
been as short in their lives as they have been violent in their death. James Madison, 4th
President of the United States, Father of the Constitution

The experience of all former ages had shown that of all human governments, democracy
was the most unstable, fluctuating and short-lived. John Quincy Adams, 6th President of
the United States

Between a balanced republic and a democracy, the difference is like that between order
and chaos. John Marshall, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, 1801-1835

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