Yes, you read that correctly. If you’re a Republican, you need to stop using the word democracy. That’s because the term doesn’t mean what you think it does.
A quick web search results in definition after definition of democracy. Unfortunately, these increasingly lengthy definitions are misleading at best. To understand the origins of the word democracy, we must look to ancient Greece. In the most basic sense, the Greek term dēmokratia (democracy) is the combination of two words: dêmos (people) and krátos (rule).
What did the ancient Greeks think of democracy? In the fifth century B.C., the famous philosopher Aristotle studied multiple Greek city-states to determine good and bad forms of government. Based on his extensive research, he presented six forms of government in his book “Politics.”
The three good forms were monarchy, aristocracy and polity. These forms of government dealt with rule by one, rule by a few, and rule by many with the goal of governing for the common good.
Aristotle also discussed three bad forms of government, again focused on rule by one (tyranny), rule by a few (oligarchy), and rule by many (democracy). The difference is that in these bad forms of government rulers rule for their own good, not the common good. Aristotle argued that in the case of democracy, the majority was inclined to oppress the minority, as even the best examples of government give way to depraved forms of democracy, oligarchy and tyranny over time.
Many ancient Greek ideals were revived by scholars during the 17th and 18th century A.D. Enlightenment period. These scholars began redefining the word democracy, attempting to elevate it to a good form of government.
John Locke was not one of these individuals. Instead, Locke emphasized the natural rights of man – life, liberty and property – and argued that governments derive their authority from the consent of the governed.
Thomas Jefferson used Locke’s arguments when he drafted the Declaration of Independence, as he and many of our founding fathers were students of ancient Greek and Enlightenment political writings. That’s why you won’t find the word democracy in our founding documents. Instead, you’ll find in Article IV, Section 4, of the United States Constitution, that, “The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form of Government….”
Most people assume that constitutional republic and constitutional democracy are interchangeable terms. They’re not. A constitutional republic is a form of polity government, one of the three good forms of government outlined by Aristotle.
It’s not a coincidence that the American Democrat Party or the various social democrat parties in Europe use this term in their names. Nor is it a coincidence that Democrats often claim to be the defenders of democracy. The average voter that hasn’t read this article might not understand what a politician means when they spout off about defending democracy, but you better believe that the politician making the claim would like nothing more than to install a democracy, oligarchy or tyranny to further their own power and interests.
So, don’t be fooled … and don’t use the word democracy.
Dr. Tobias Vogt von Heselholt (shortened to “Vote”) is a retired U.S. Army officer, former professor, author, and elected member of the Alabama Republican Executive Committee. For more, see his author page at amazon.com.
The views and opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the policy or position of 1819 News. To comment, please send an email with your name and contact information to [email protected].
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