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To: Cogito Ergo Sum who wrote (108795)	2/23/2010 6:17:07 PM
From: axial	1 Recommendation Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 116555

Seriously, straight-up: do you believe for a minute that behavior of people at the low end of the socioeconomic scale will set the tone for the upper end? Of course not. It's the other way around. Jim

To: Cogito Ergo Sum who wrote (108795)	2/23/2010 7:35:10 PM
From: russet	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 116555

Don't forget China's Partyocracy capitalism which smugges your two ocracies together,...sort of. What's good for the party members is good for the other billion or so peasants. And if you treat your masters right and do the right business things, you too can become a millionaire or billionaire and live the Chinese dream. :-)

To: Cogito Ergo Sum who wrote (108795)	2/23/2010 8:50:03 PM
From: Hawkmoon	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 116555

Democracy is based on the assumption that a million men are wiser than one man. Actually, democracy (or at least representative democracy) is based upon the assumption that the masses can elect a wiser man to represent their political and economic interests. And if they turn out to be more of a clown than a sage, then replace them with another. But democracy is nothing without a rule of law that protects the minority, as well as preserves freedom of speech AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, the Press. Without a free press, holding a vested business interest in uncovering scandals and corruption because it sells papers, Democracy is rendered castrated and impotent. Humanity has never really had much success with "Philosopher Kings". Too many authoritarian leaders, or totalitarian regimes, have treated the people of their country as pawns to be sacrificed in their personal power games . Absolute power corrupts absolutely. Look at the USSR, China, and Iran... Their concept of military operations have generally been human wave frontal assaults. And they can be quite effective if you have more bodies than the enemy has bullets and bombs.. But it's not particularly "glorious" if one happens to be one of the sacrificial lambs being thrust in the enemy's guns, often with a group of political officers standing behind you with sub-machine guns with order to kill anyone who retreats or runs. And, as we see from a lot of our politicians, as well as our pseudo-scientists, sometimes what they represent as wisdom is nothing more than their own thirst for power and control. Democracy is the only means, minus revolution/coup, by which these megalo-maniacs can be kept under some semblance of control and accountability. That's a universal truth in the US, it's universal in Europe, and it's universal, in my opinion, in Asia. In sum, as Churchill aptly put it, Democracy is the worst form of government, except for every other kind. Hawk

To: Cogito Ergo Sum who wrote (108795)	2/24/2010 7:30:33 AM
From: Dan3	1 Recommendation Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 116555

Re: Two great quotes from Heinlein... I love Heinlein, but in this case I think he missed the point. Democracy isn't about collecting wisdom, it's about sharing power. If everyone's being short-sighted, venal, and self centered, no system will work, but democracy can reduce the excesses.

To: Cogito Ergo Sum who wrote (108795)	2/24/2010 10:10:26 AM
From: bacchus_ii	Respond to of 116555

In no way the wisdom of mathematicians is better than the wisdom of peasants. Democracy must follow some rule to work. The two most important I think are: - Voter got to be well informed. - Voter should vote only on what concern them. In the current system, voter act only on election and are the most dis-informed and misled as possible. Democracy after Edward Bernays should be ruled a different way like automatic removal of lying or misleading politician. "...the current political process where idiots elect liars to transfer wealth to crooks." - Scott Adams