Democracy

Voter Empowerment Project

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As should be obvious from our relatively infrequent posts, as of January, 2019 this blog has shifted its focus from shorter, more “newsworthy” explorations and announcements to long form, in-depth, mostly psycho-philosophical posts. However, when we received the weekly post from Jen Hofmann (Americans of Conscience Checklist), we could not help but consider suspending our reticence for a brief shout out to someone worthy of praise for her diligence and support for the worthwhile endeavors she sends our way.

Specifically, you might want to check out Jen’s site to learn more about the June 2019 event focusing on “strengthening the integrity of the 2020 elections”.

Hobbits & Hooligans

What kind of voter are you?

Just curious, do you consider yourself a Hobbit, a Hooligan or a Vulcan? Not sure?  Well, are you politically well informed?  Do you perhaps vote in accordance with your best buds, your BFFs, your clan, your family, friends or grossly defined political party (largely disregarding the issues associated with a particular candidate)?  You wouldn’t by chance make a habit of either choosing a candidate without even knowing who or what you are voting for or (perhaps more likely) do you not vote at all?  If you recognize yourself in two of these three descriptions, according to political philosopher Jason Brennan, you should be excluded from the voting rosters of your community.

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Democracy That Isn’t

Antidemocracy does not take the form of overt attacks upon the idea of government by the people. Instead, politically it means encouraging …“civic demobilization,” conditioning an electorate to being aroused for a brief spell, controlling its attention span, and then encouraging distraction or apathy.  ~Sheldon Wolin from Democracy, Inc.

Demacracy as Fraud and Illiberal.pngIf we remain faithful to the cause of “democracy” as we know it, will everything turn out alright? Maybe? But maybe not. According to David Frum and others, we are beginning to experience what to the average mind appears as the unexpected fragility of democracy and democratic systems. Most of us feel this vulnerability as a “wrongness” within the current sociopolitical situation. To be sure, we differ on what is wrong and how to fix it, but most of us feel that our society is “off” in some way. Regardless of our current sociopolitical perspectives, Sheldon Wolin’s notion of “inverted totalitarianism” is most likely at the root of our troubles. Whether by its direct effects or the structures necessary to sustain it, our society has been skewed in various ways, skewed away from the revolutionary Thomas Paine’s notion of “democracy” and “freedom”.

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Corruption of the American Republic

“We are living through the most dangerous challenge
to the free government of the United States
that anyone alive has encountered.”
~David Frum

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Juxtapositions, oxymorons and other somewhat paradoxical encounters can presents useful intrigue, piquing our interest considerably more than more mundane occurrences. David Frum and his new book Trumpocracy, might present just such an experience for you. (more…)