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Never mind Turkey. Could you name three Western governments that satisfy Popper's criterion?

• pjc50 10y ago
  ? Most western governments hand over peacefully after elections.
  • pythia__ 10y ago
    That is exactly the point. Holding elections, even peaceful, transparent elections, is not the same thing as "replacing the government." Most government employees and non-employees who heavily influence policy are not elected and can't be replaced through elections.
    • pjc50 10y ago
      This reduces into a linguistic question of what Karl Popper actually meant, which is kind of .. unfalsifiable. At least in UK politics, 'government' explicitly means "Her Majesty's Government", ie the Prime Minister and those they appoint to assist them. Not the Crown, not the permanent state.
    • vintermann 10y ago
      Sure they can be replaced peacefully, in theory. Governments do occasionally fire civil servants for loyalty reasons, though it's controversial, since those positions aren't supposed to wield political power. Think of Bush's prosecutor purges. Though I agree that Popper doesn't focus enough on degrees of change or feasibility of change (if the only parties essentially agree on everything, is government really replaced?)