"A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the voters discover that they can vote themselves largesse from the public

"A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the voters discover that they can vote themselves largesse from the public treasury." - Someone, probably with a T in their name. [1] Having one or two layers of bureaucracy can provide a powerful buffer to voters doing things for immediate gains, or based on popular trends. Certainly some of how modern governments are set up is based on the time information took to travel and the distances involved hundreds (or thousands) of years ago, but I don't think that this point was lost on the early founders of democratic systems. People (especially Americans) often forget that a bureaucracy that slows things down can provide the occasional benefit, right along with all its costs. [1]: http://www.lorencollins.net/tytler.html http://www.lorencollins.net/tytler.html