“Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time.”
Winston Churchill said that in 1947, after having led Britain through the Second World War and subsequently being booted out of power by the British voters.
Everyone alive in 2016 can attest to how frustrating democracy can be, but ultimately, it is the best form of governance humanity has ever devised. Period. And as citizens of a democracy, we each have a moral imperative to actively participate and defend our democracy, from all threats, both foreign and domestic.
Now, what exactly does democracy mean? At its core, democracy means all citizens get an equal voice in decision making, an equal vote. That’s all. There are different ways to go about creating a democracy, but what is relevant here is that our Constitution lays out the rules for our democracy. Although, technically speaking, America is not a democracy, rather it is a democratic republic. This means instead of everyone voting on every issue, we elect representatives to study the issues and empower them to make decisions for us all. If we don’t like how they are representing us, …show more content…
What laws and practices are causing our democratic dysfunction? I’ve been obsessing over this conundrum for longer than I’d like to admit, and have come up with three core issues which contribute to our political dysfunction. One, our lack of meaningful campaign finance regulations. Two, gerrymandered districts leading to hyper-partisanship. Three, low voter turnout. Now, if these issues are new to you, don’t worry. I am going to walk through what each issue is and how it impacts your life. A dysfunctional political system impacts us all in both profound and mundane ways. Fixing our politics won’t solve all our problems over night, but it gives us the ability to positively impact our world. And that is something worth fighting
Winston Churchill said that in 1947, after having led Britain through the Second World War and subsequently being booted out of power by the British voters.
Everyone alive in 2016 can attest to how frustrating democracy can be, but ultimately, it is the best form of governance humanity has ever devised. Period. And as citizens of a democracy, we each have a moral imperative to actively participate and defend our democracy, from all threats, both foreign and domestic.
Now, what exactly does democracy mean? At its core, democracy means all citizens get an equal voice in decision making, an equal vote. That’s all. There are different ways to go about creating a democracy, but what is relevant here is that our Constitution lays out the rules for our democracy. Although, technically speaking, America is not a democracy, rather it is a democratic republic. This means instead of everyone voting on every issue, we elect representatives to study the issues and empower them to make decisions for us all. If we don’t like how they are representing us, …show more content…
What laws and practices are causing our democratic dysfunction? I’ve been obsessing over this conundrum for longer than I’d like to admit, and have come up with three core issues which contribute to our political dysfunction. One, our lack of meaningful campaign finance regulations. Two, gerrymandered districts leading to hyper-partisanship. Three, low voter turnout. Now, if these issues are new to you, don’t worry. I am going to walk through what each issue is and how it impacts your life. A dysfunctional political system impacts us all in both profound and mundane ways. Fixing our politics won’t solve all our problems over night, but it gives us the ability to positively impact our world. And that is something worth fighting