Democracy need not be about declaring itself the most efficient way to pass the best laws. Even its strongest advocates would hesitate to fully endorse that. Wh

Democracy need not be about declaring itself the most efficient way to pass the best laws. Even its strongest advocates would hesitate to fully endorse that. What democracy is, or at any rate what it's supposed to be, ideally, is a mechanism to act as a check on those in power. It's a way to formalize the power of mobs, and (hopefully) to channel it into something useful that doesn't involve burning down half the city when the ruling class goes too far. Namely, voting in a different government, which would still serve mainly the interests of the ruling class of course, but in an effort to keep its own power will make some concessions to the rest of us.