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In A Democracy We Get The Government We Deserve

With all the chaos around the presidential election, I’ve had the opportunity to think deeply about the nature of democracy.


In a democracy we do not always get the government we want, but we get the government we deserve.  The losers of course, don’t believe that’s true because they are convinced the nation deserves better. But in a democracy the losers deserve to lose because they were either flawed candidates, had flawed ideas, or they just failed to convince voters of their competence.  The winners deserve to win for just the opposite reason. They were able to sell the public that they could do a better job than the opposition, so they deserve to rule, at least for a time.


This doesn’t mean every winning candidate is the very best candidate. In some cases, they may simply be less flawed, or better financed than their opponent, they lost to, or their party dominates their state, or region.  But that’s the way democracy works. If they fail us, we can always, in the words of my father, “Tro da bums out!”


One more way we get the government we deserve, is if we fail to fully participate in it. If you’re not willing to be a poll watcher, knock on doors on behalf of your candidate, and get engaged in races and with the issues, and the only thing you do is show up to vote, if your candidate looses, you, and your party got the government you deserve.


Democracy takes work!


Another miracle of a democracy is that it is self-correcting and self-healing.  It may take a few years or a decade, but sooner or later, as long as we have a free press, the majority party’s flaws will become self-evident, and new candidates will emerge with what voters believe are better ideas. In the long run, Democracy works!


Almost more important than the rule of law to a democracy is a free press.  A free press helps voters make more wise decisions and keeps politicians accountable.  There’s been a lot of talk about “fake news.”  A few weeks ago, I blogged about the fact that there are almost no unbiased news sources in the U.S. so free and fair news should be on the endangered species list!  Almost every news source is fake news. “Fake” doesn’t always mean it’s a lie.  It can also present a half-truth, or truth that get almost no coverage that leaves a completely different impression than if the whole truth were known.


It drives friends of mine nuts that I try to listen to NPR, also watch Fox News and CNN and I listen to “The World and Everything In It” podcast. It’s the only way I know to get reasonably close to the truth about the people and issues Christians ought to be students of.


This quote from Timothy has nothing directly to do with politics, but Paul’s warnings still holds in the political arena;

“For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.”  2 Timothy 4:3

So, don’t just right off every idea your party doesn’t like. You, your party and I could be wrong. Educate yourself.  “Those who fail to learn from history, are doomed to repeat it.”

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