Bernie Sanders has been trying to force the Democratic party to make him their nominee, despite the fact that he has accumulated fewer votes and fewer delegates. He and his unfortunate followers are about to find out what democracy is all about. It is not about rule by a minority faction. It is about majority rule, with protection for minority rights. There is nothing "democratic," about Bernie's so-called "democratic socialism." It is "authoritarian socialism," pure and simple. It would compel the majority to believe and act in accordance with a minority that claims to know better than the majority what is best for them. Threats and compulsion are authoritarian, not democratic, methods. Bernie and his followers together lack the self-reflection to recognize the danger that their absolutist positions pose to a genuinely democratic way of life.
Democracy, as a way of life and as a political regime, is a hard thing to achieve and even harder to maintain. There is something about human beings that longs for the easy way, for simple answers, for command and obey authoritarian structures. It gets tiring for us to try to figure things out for ourselves and make our own decisions. Following an authoritarian leader seems more comforting. Believing as we are told to believe eliminates the struggle of "yes and no," of debate within ourselves, of thinking for ourselves. That is why declining democracies tend to turn into authoritarian regimes. Confused people turn to strong leaders with simple answers for everything. Nuance is disquieting and inconvenient. Finally, authoritarianism has nothing to do with "left wing" or "right wing." It can sprout from any ideology. It is an attitude, not a list of beliefs or positions.
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