Critiques of Democracy

Democracy is defined in different breaths by different people. For some people, democracy means idealism, justice and liberty as well as the divine incarnations of the societal principle. Other people define it as political justification based on the foundation of idealism. Some people think that democracy has an uncertain value in the society. There are people who feel that democracy is unimportant to them. However, places with such kind of people who see no importance of democracy are rare. Democracy cannot be completely ignored anywhere in the world. It is very rare to find people ignoring the role democracy plays in the society (Lukacs, 2005).

Democracy has penetrated every part of the world and it is virtually in people’s thoughts everywhere. Democracy is a word defined by many sets of complex concepts existing in the multifarious human world. It is noted that people often assume that they know the meaning of democracy. However, people have never really bothered to inquire what democracy ought to mean to everyone, what it may mean to other people or what it actually means when put into practice (Kofmel, 2008). It is a word that many people around the world take for granted yet it plays an important role in the society at large. It is evident that different people hold different views when it comes to democracy. On the one hand, there are people who show interest in democracy and will always fight for the rights of other oppressed people. On the other hand, there are people who show no interest at all in wanting to know what democracy entails and how they can benefit from the fruits of democracy (Benoist, 2011).

Democracy can be recognized in two senses namely democracy as the cultural emphasis and democracy as a political system that has evolved through cultural trends (Mann, 2004).

Cultural Democracy

In cultural democracy, there is a key principle that any person irrespective of his or her birthright must be viewed as a person who is important, worthy and capable of achieving anything in the society. Such a person should therefore be accorded his or her democratic right to carry out his or her duties without any interference. Democratization would therefore mean giving people opportunity to access things which were previously difficult to access. People’s democracy should not be violated simply because of their cultural backgrounds. Everyone is entitled to his or her democratic space irrespective of cultural affiliations (Sunic, 2011).

Political Democracy

Political establishments worldwide have been created as a result of cultural sentiments. It is therefore clear that cultural democracy relates to political democracy in one way or another. Political democracy can therefore be better understood by understanding cultural democracy. They both advocate for openness, freedom, opportunity and even spite and jealousy in some occasions. The political democracy consists of a key principle, majority rule, which is expressed in elections to determine people fit to hold political office. It is also expressed directly in voting for or against political resolutions and laws of an organization or country. It is noted that people who seek individual freedom always rely on decisions made by the majority as a fundamental means of freedom. Political democracy should be surpassed when it is thought not to serve as the ideal means of freedom. Political democracy is used by political figures as a justification for their political power. They argue that political power has been vested in them by the majority of people voting them into political offices (Ludovici, 1921).

References

Benoist, A. (2011). The Problem of Democracy. New York: Arktos Media.

Kofmel, E. (2008). Anti-Democratic THought. Virginia: Imprint Academic.

Ludovici, A. (1921). The False Assumptions of Democracy. London: Heath Cranon Ltd.

Lukacs, J. (2005). Democracy and Populism: Fear and Hatred. Boston: Yale Universitiy Press.

Mann, M. (2004). The Dark Side of Democracy: Explaining Ethnic Cleansing. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Sunic, T. (2011). Against Democracy and Equity: The European New Right. New York: Arktos Media Ltd.