“Democracy” Thrives in Darkness — And Liberty Withers

The title of this post alludes to a slogan adopted by The Washington Post (WaPo) in February 2017 to mark the paper’s membership in the anti-Trump chorus of “news” outlets. The idea, of course, is that Trump is the new Hitler and WaPo and its brethren will keep us out of the gas chambers by daring to utter the truth (not). This is complete balderdash, inasmuch as WaPo and its ilk are enthusiastic hand-maidens of “liberal” fascism.

WaPo, like too many other institutions and persons, treats “democracy” as if it were a good thing, not to be questioned or tampered with. But “democracy” is nothing more than a feel-good word. The real thing — democracy in practice — is far from a good thing. Much of the evil entailed in democracy is hidden from view. And when exposed to view, the evil is dismissed as the result of having the “wrong people” in positions of power.

This is precisely parallel to the usual defense of socialism as it was and is practiced in countries like the USSR, China, Cuba, and Venezuela. The corruption, oppression, and poverty caused by socialism are chalked up to the “wrong people”. The correct attribution of evil would be to human nature as it actually exists, which is independent of the prevailing form of government. It’s as if there could be a thing called “true socialism” or “true democracy” that would somehow function without the presence of human beings.

What is it about democracy that entails evil? Let’s start with these definitions of democracy:

1. Government by the people, exercised either directly or through elected representatives.

2. A political or social unit that has such a government.

3. The common people, considered as the primary source of political power.

4. Majority rule.

5. The principles of social equality and respect for the individual within a community.

The first definition is the one that most people would ascribe to (I hope). Number 2 is just a variant of number 1. Number 3 is another variant, though I do wonder who the “uncommon people” are. Number 4 is a qualification of number 1, that is, a common formula for deciding how elected representatives are chosen and how they make governing rules (to the extent that they haven’t delegated their authority to bureaucrats). Number 5 is an irrelevant misuse of “democracy” (e.g., a rich person is called ‘democratic’ because he doesn’t put on airs).

So we’re left with number 1 and number 4: Government directly by the people or their elected representatives, with most decisions being made by a majority of the people or their representatives (except where they are made unilaterally by virtue of presumed authority or raw power).

That’s a good definition, insofar as it would meet with wide agreement. To call it simplistic would be an understatement. But democracy (in practice) in America is nothing like the simplistic version that WaPo and its ilk conjure cynically. The following questions expose its crucial failings:

Is there a real boundary between decisions made by the “people’s government” and decisions made by citizens acting independently of the governing body (i.e., privately)? (This boundary has yet to be settled after 230 years, and it has generally expanded to exclude more and more private activity.)
Why is a bare majority sufficient to authorize action by a “democratic” government when it is supposed to represent the whole people? Unanimity is almost impossible to achieve, but why not a majority of three-fifths, two-thirds, three-fourths, or even seven-eighths?
What kinds of decisions should be delegated to surrogates — unrepresentative officials — to make on their own authority? In other words, why do the “people’s representatives” allow non-elected, almost untouchable bureaucrats to make and apply laws, and to sit in judgment of persons deemed to have broken those laws?
Are the penalties for violations of law applied consistently, regardless of one’s wealth, position, or power, or is leniency routinely accorded certain persons — most notably governing officials and their cronies?
When and how may members of the governing body be held personally responsible (aside from being forced from office) for harms they may cause by their official acts? Or should the cloak of office embolden officials to play fast and loose with the lives, fortunes, and liberty of their subjects?
When the governing body consistently violates the boundary between its stated powers and those of its subjects, how are the violations to be remedied? (The only options at hand are elections, which have proven ineffective in halting Leviathan, or rebellion, which is an extreme and probably futile course.)
How can a nation of more than 300 million disparate citizens possibly be governed wisely or well by a relative handful of elected officials and small armies of non-elected ones?

In sum, actual democracy is complex, deeply flawed, and conducted mostly in the darkness — beyond the view (or interest) of its subjects. It is not a regime conducive to liberty or the general welfare. It could be that only if its sole purposes were to protect citizens from foreign predators and ensure free trade among the States.

Things will not be set aright by popular demand or “democratic” leadership. Ignorance, moral cowardice, and venality dominate the body politic — at all levels. The only way out, as I see it, is for majorities of the people some States to demand that their governments resist Leviathan by selectively ignoring some of its decrees. If California can do it, surely some of the 15 States that went for Trump by more than 60 percent can do it.

Once the ice is broken, nullification — the refusal to abide by unconstitutional laws and decrees emanating from Washington — will become a national movement. Federalism will return after an absence of almost 90 years. National “democracy” will be a thing of the past. The citizens of each State will have greater control over the reach of government into their lives. It won’t be nirvana, but it will be better than the present state of affairs.

Quasi-secession, as I would call it, is the only peaceful way out. It’s the only “democratic” way out. If that doesn’t work, there’s always the real thing, which is legal.

Politics and Prosperity

“Government is a disease masquerading as its own cure.”

“Democracy” Thrives in Darkness — And Liberty Withers

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