Democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government

[liberal N proud]

" A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the voters discover that they can vote themselves largess of the public treasury. From that time on the majority always votes for the candidates promising the most benefits from the public treasury, with the results that a democracy always collapses over loose fiscal policy, always followed by a dictatorship.
The average age of the world's great civilizations has been 200 years. These nations have progressed through this sequence: from bondage to spiritual faith; from spiritual faith to great courage; from courage to liberty; from liberty to abundance; from abundance to selfishness; from selfishness to complacency; from complacency to apathy; from apathy to dependency; from dependency back again to bondage."

Sir Alex Fraser Tytler ( 1742-1813 )
Scottish jurist and historian

Where do you think we are in the sequence (complacency/apathy)?

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

1. He may be right. But, it would be nice to give democracy a try.

Instead of the plutocracy we've been stuck with for the last 50 years.

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

2. Today's happy, warm, fuzzy-bunny post.

Paxil for everyone, on me.

[bryant69]

3. Standard Right Wing Formulation

SOmetimes I think they really want a fuedal society. One where a few "deserving" have unquestioned power over all the other lesser mortals.

Bryant
Check it out --> http://politicalcomment.blogspot.com

[gpandas]

4. from dependency back to bondage.

[whistle]

5. It's funny, but the only quote I can find by Alex Tytler is the one...

...outlined above. Every neo-conservative seems to embrace this semi-famous quote. I suppose this man had his 15 minutes of fame in one brilliant flash of contempt for the true spirit of man, and now other equally small minded people embrace this fallacious idea.

Alex Fraser Tytler was a smug monarchist who wished to preserve the English/Scottish aristocracy and I'm certain had he been alive between 1872 and 1943 would have pushed forward a fascist oriented agenda for the United Kingdom. It's even questionable that Tytler actually wrote or even originated such a statement.

[Egalitariat]

6. Nobody here wants a democracy

A true democracy is one man, one vote. Majority rule. Mob rule.

A true democracy would have the Republicans running their agenda down our throats right now because they've been skunking us in elections.

The fact there has been no vote on *'s judicial appointments is because the minority has rights in our government. The minority has no rights in a democracy.