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This is why I correct people to "liberal democracy" when they describe our system of government as "democracy". Better yet, a "liberal, constitutional democrati
by theseatoms 9y ago
This is why I correct people to "liberal democracy" when they describe our system of government as "democracy". Better yet, a "liberal, constitutional democratic republic". </pendantry>
Edit:
"Liberal" in the "classic liberal" sense. (i.e. the protection of individual liberty)
- paulgb 9y agoIf we're going to be pedantic, that's not a correction, it's just greater specificity. The genre of "actually the USA isn't a democracy it's an X" (where X is a subset of democracies) arguments is oddly persistent. I call it the "it's not a fruit it's a banana" argument.
- theseatoms 9y agoYou're right. "Correct" is the wrong word. It just seems best to be as specific as possible in political conversations. The point I wanted to stress was the "liberal" piece—the constitutional protection against mob rule.
- paulgb 9y agoIndeed. The second part of my comment was aimed more at api's comment below.