Stop calling it a Democracy

Stop calling the United States of America a Democracy!   We are not a democracy!  We are a Republic that uses a Democratic process to election our representatives.

Are we really that ignorant of our own history? Didn’t you ever listen to the pledge of Allegiance that you have probably recited thousands of times? “I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the REPUBLIC for which it stands….” Did you realize that the words Democracy or Democratic do not appear anywhere in the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution or the Bill of Rights? Our founding forefathers argued quite fervently the pros and cons of a Democracy. But the one thing they wanted more than anything else, the one thing they had in common which bridged the vast pollitical differences of this group of men was they wanted a truly representative gov’t that Included everyone.    They believed that gov’t should represent even those who didn’t vote with the MAJORITY!    They did not believe that our gov’t should represent the views of only 50.01% of the citizens. So they took great pains when writing the constitution to use fractions like  two thirds (2/3) or three quarters (3/4).  Today, we have a perfect example of why our Republic has stood the test of time versus a Democracy.   The current administration has tried to install a Democracy instead of a Republic in Iraq.   And exactly what the founding forefathers predicted would happen has. The views of the majority (Shiites) are now the only ones being heard in the gov’t.  The result?  FIGHTING!  KILLING! VIOLENCE! A truly representative gov’t has to stand for everyone….NOT JUST THE MAJORITY! However, it is clear the the current Bush administration does not understand this.   Their statements backed by their actions indicate this.   They believe their duty is to represent the people who voted for them.  Perhaps that is why they installed a similar gov’t in Iraq.    The results have been clearly seen by the entire world. Perhaps if they had modeled Iraq as a Representative Republic with states that are allowed to make laws according to the views of their communities, our men and women would be home. Yes it is clear many people don’t understand the difference between a Republic that uses a Democratic process to elect its representatives versus a Democracy.  Perhaps it is time that we once again debated this issue if for no other reason than to educate the masses of the differences.  

Personally, I would love to see the 2008 candidates debate the issue of a Republic versus a Democracy.  That debate would most likely clearly define the direction in which that candidate would choose to lead our country in.