Democracy

Something must be said about democracy, especially America’s odd structure and our, the American people’s, love for democracy. It is certainly an incredible experience that all American citizens live through that is not the same or replicated anywhere else in the world. What is our democracy, or rather, America’s democracy? Is it equal to all, or does it cater to only the privileged? American democracy is an experience with good and bad parts to it. This democracy affects so many around the world and its influence spreads so far.

What is democracy? More specifically, what is American democracy? Pure democracy values the will of the people for every issue that the state must reside over, from private property to infrastructure.  One could argue that the Roman Republic was a direct democracy, even with their extreme class issues. However, the American democratic model is very different than that. We hold value in the power of elected officials. These elections are often not based whether or not they are intelligent or able to lead, but if they hold in line a similar view of the country as their constituents would believe in. For our current system too, one could argue that the bi-partisan system limits the power of the people to voice their opinion and empowers lobbyists and the oligarchical establishment that supports the government, but that is another argument in among itself. American democracy could then be criticized as being unfair, or unequal to those of the minority.

            But with this criticism offered, one must look at why and how America’s democracy does work. To quote Walt Whitman in Democratic Vistas, “Long ere the second centennial arrives, there will be some forty to fifty great States, among them Canada and Cuba. When the present century closes, our population will be sixty or seventy millions. The Pacific will be ours, and the Atlantic mainly ours. There will be a daily electric communication with every part of the globe. What an age! What a land! Where, elsewhere, one so great? The individuality of one nation must then, as always, lead the world.” Although this rhetoric would probably not be appreciated as much as it was in Whitman’s context, I think it is important to note that he essentially saw that the American struggle for democracy and the product after these struggles will be good, which it is. The standard of living in the USA is arguably the best in the world, even among bickering politicians who never seem to accomplish anything. This form of argumentative not necessarily full representative democracy is not perfect, but has made the United States an extremely successful and influential nation.

            I personally enjoyed Whitman’s almost idealistic approach to American democracy, but one must also look at it through a rational and realistic lens. We as Americans have a specific view of freedom that we covered highly last semester. It is a very odd and precise view, although everyone sees it differently. I find it fascinating then that Americans can allow themselves the non-liberty of direct democracy, in order to use a democracy that is, like I said above, unequal in that often the idea of utilitarianism, or the greatest amount of good for the greatest amount of people is thrown by the wayside for the idea of “the greatest amount of good… for me.” I believe that this strange paradox of American ideals is often forgotten and is important to view when analyzing American democracy.

To offer another critique to Whitman’s Democratic Vistas, I felt that he did not give a good enough argument for utilitarianism. With that being said, his beliefs and those of other early Americans may show where our current ideals originated. Whitman talks about in the work how suffrage is dangerous. This comes from a belief that I have viewed of Whitman that some people should not vote, because they are uneducated or inept in their understandings of the world. I will have to disagree with this as well, because again, this does not count for everyone’s interests. American democracy has evolved over time, and will keep growing for many years to come.