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Americans support a lot of crap they probably shouldn't and don't know a whole lot about. This is why we have a Republic, not a Democracy. Edit: To put this a

Americans support a lot of crap they probably shouldn't and don't know a whole lot about. This is why we have a Republic, not a Democracy. Edit: To put this a bit less glibly, there's a whole range of things that the "average American" doesn't know enough about to make a fully qualified decision. That's not to trash "average Americans" - I wouldn't do a whole lot better at making coherent, well-thought-out policies which take all available information into account if put on the spot - but it is to say that just because something polls well doesn't mean it should be policy. Our government is supposed to represent the best interests of the people, not blindly enact their will.

smokeyj 16y ago
"average American" doesn't know enough about to make a fully qualified decision. If voters aren't qualified for a direct democracy, what makes them qualified for an indirect democracy AKA republic? Wouldn't they just pick the wrong representation, given the inherent ineptness of the public? If the public is truly a fringe, and the government is supposed to represent the fringe, wouldn't the government just be a fringe? "Our government is supposed to represent the best interests of the people, not blindly enact their will." If they're not enacting the will of the people, then who's will are they enacting? What qualifies these folks to know the best interest of everyone else?
- danielsoneg 16y ago
  Well, first, it's an imperfect system, which is all we'll ever get. We're still human, after all. I say "don't know enough" as a specific and non-judgmental quantifier, not an overall statement - in other words, while otherwise competent and capable, and possessing areas of expertise, the average person may not know enough about specific issues and the diversity of interests surrounding those issues to draft adequate policy, nor judge the quality of drafted policy. That's not to say they couldn't learn, but people simply don't have enough time to fully engage the issues of the day. Because of this, we've elected to have a republic. Ideally, this means we choose gifted and dedicated people to represent us and to, as their full-time job, build up a body of knowledge and wisdom such to devise policies which best address pressing issues (Ideally.). This is a concession to the fact that we as citizens simply do not have the time to become experts both in our chosen craft and in the business of state. As to their qualifications, they're nothing but dedication, integrity, and intelligence. Ideally. Obviously this isn't what we have, but it's the thinking behind what we wrote down a few generations back, and I think it's still valid.

smokeyj 16y ago

"average American" doesn't know enough about to make a fully qualified decision. If voters aren't qualified for a direct democracy, what makes them qualified for an indirect democracy AKA republic? Wouldn't they just pick the wrong representation, given the inherent ineptness of the public? If the public is truly a fringe, and the government is supposed to represent the fringe, wouldn't the government just be a fringe? "Our government is supposed to represent the best interests of the people, not blindly enact their will." If they're not enacting the will of the people, then who's will are they enacting? What qualifies these folks to know the best interest of everyone else?

danielsoneg 16y ago
Well, first, it's an imperfect system, which is all we'll ever get. We're still human, after all. I say "don't know enough" as a specific and non-judgmental quantifier, not an overall statement - in other words, while otherwise competent and capable, and possessing areas of expertise, the average person may not know enough about specific issues and the diversity of interests surrounding those issues to draft adequate policy, nor judge the quality of drafted policy. That's not to say they couldn't learn, but people simply don't have enough time to fully engage the issues of the day. Because of this, we've elected to have a republic. Ideally, this means we choose gifted and dedicated people to represent us and to, as their full-time job, build up a body of knowledge and wisdom such to devise policies which best address pressing issues (Ideally.). This is a concession to the fact that we as citizens simply do not have the time to become experts both in our chosen craft and in the business of state. As to their qualifications, they're nothing but dedication, integrity, and intelligence. Ideally. Obviously this isn't what we have, but it's the thinking behind what we wrote down a few generations back, and I think it's still valid.