General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Whom do you want as the Repuke nominee in 2012 and why? Given all the [View all]LeftishBrit
(41,192 posts)As regards:
' I think democracies are healthiest when they have vigorous debate between starkly opposing visions. '
I am not sure about that. Certainly, I think that a healthy democracy debates opposing views rather than banning them. However, I think that a democracy can be very healthy when the far right is marginalized and the main debates are between for example the likes of Bernie Sanders and the likes of Obama. In some Europaean countries, especially in Scandinava, this has been at times the case, and the countries have been none the worse for it.
In the UK, one of our best times as a democracy was during the post-war 'consensus' period when most leaders of both mainstream parties accepted the welfare state and the concept of a full-employment state.