Saturday, March 14, 2009

I Pledge Allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America...

...and to the Democracy Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with Liberty and Justice for all.

Do you believe that America is a democracy? Did you know that the word "democracy" does not appear in the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution of the United States, nor any of the fifty state constitutions? This interesting and informative video explains the difference between political systems, and why we should hope America NEVER becomes a democracy!


2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Ours is a representative democracy and a constitutional republic. It is no less correct to call the United States a democracy than it is to call it a republic. Which term one chooses has nothing to do with the legitimacy of the Republican or Democratic party, which is what these exercises usually imply.

Miriam Robbins said...

I find it interesting that the Wikipedia article on representative democracy included the following statements:

"Representative democracy is not inconsistent with oligarchy..." (first paragraph)

"There is no necessity that individual liberties are respected in a representative democracy." (fourth paragraph)

It is also interesting to note that the article on the constitutional republic states that it was "first advocated in the 18th and 19th centuries by classical liberals..."

I must respectfully disagree with the implication that the video is insulting the U.S. Democratic party (originally founded as the Democratic-Republican party of 1792) or endorsing the U. S. Republican party (founded in 1854 as the anti-slavery party). In my opinion, both parties are necessary to the balance of American government, and each bring their strengths and weaknesses into play when they control state and/or federal legislatures. Rather, I see it as a lesson in history as to the intentions of the founding fathers, who were well-educated in classical education, heavily influenced by Greece and Rome.

Joseph, thank you for taking the time to read and leave your comments.