Debt, Debt And More Debt: Is Democracy To Blame? (NPR)
I found this article posted on Facebook and thought I'd share it here.
"High-profile experts are staging two separate Washington press conferences Tuesday to demand action on public-debt problems. One group is targeting state budget crises; the other, the federal budget mess.
If the ancient Greek philosopher Plato were still alive, he might hold a third press conference to declare: "It's hopeless. I told you so. Democracy will always degenerate into chaos because people will vote for their immediate self interests, not the long-term good."
At a time when nearly every major democracy in the world is facing a debt crisis, some people are wondering: Might Plato be right?
And if voters keep electing leaders who can't balance budgets, what happens next? (SPOILER ALERT: If you believe Plato, you won't like where this story is heading)..."
"Some pro-democracy groups say that the solution to budget problems is to have even more democracy. They support a citizen-engagement movement known as "participatory budgeting." The practice began in Brazil in 1989 and has spread to many communities around the world.
Supporters say state and federal government should provide grants to allow direct voting on what local communities might want. For example, in Chicago's 49th Ward, residents recently were allowed to vote directly on how to spend $1.3 million, rather than wait for city or state officials to make all decisions. Voters chose sidewalk repairs and streetlights.
That kind of direct democracy and participatory budgeting could help voters better understand — and solve — budgeting problems, supporters say.
But Plato? He concluded that democracy invariably must crumble because citizens are fundamentally indifferent to the greater good. In time, tyrants take over.
In the United States, that has not been the outcome so far. Having learned from King George in 1776, "they know a king could spend you into ruin too," Schragger said."
Full article: http://www.npr.org/2012/07/17/156872687/debt-debt-and-more-debt-is-democracy-to-blame?ft=1&f=1001
