Democracy is a principle that the Founding Fathers of America used to make sure that people are given freedoms that they didn’t-do not use contractions have elsewhere. Over the years‚ democratic governments have become more numerous and follow the United States of America’s model. Therefore‚ this paper discusses how democracy is defined‚ its effect on freedom‚ the relevance of the American Dream‚ and the state of the United States of America 10(ten) years from now. Democracy is formally defined
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Athens Democracy The first person to define democracy was an Athenian leader called Cleisthenes. He called it Demokratia‚ which meant rule by people. In their democracy‚ only male citizens who were older than eighteen could participate. Demokratia gave a strong structure to the Athenian government‚ which served as a model for future governments in the world. The Demokratia had three main institutions. The first one is the Ekklesia‚ which is an assembly in which all qualified citizens could participate
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to the people” * John Lennon Introduction Democracy‚ it is generally believed‚ had its roots in Ancient Athens. We know it spread its stems to most of Europe and later to parts of Asia by mid 19th century ‚ mostly in the form of parliamentary democracy. But in the context of this paper‚we are not interested in the histrocity of the idea or concept of democracy‚ but in the idea itself. That is to say we want to analyze the meaning of democracy and its different forms‚ study its efficiency (so
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THE AMAZING RACE PRINCIPLES OF DEMOCRACY From “Democracy for All‚” Street Law‚ Inc.: http://www.streetlaw.org/democlesson.html People from around the world have identified the basic principles‚ which must exist in order to have a democratic government. These principles often become a part of the constitution or bill of rights in a democratic society. Though no two democratic countries are exactly alike‚ people in democracies support many of the same basic principles and desire the same
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Democracy is the political system where all governmental power is dispersed among the people. What the people want‚ is what the people get. Everyone has as much of an equal say as the next person; whether that person is more wealthy‚ more influential‚ or more well liked. It was created in opposition to many forms of government where the main power is held solely by one‚ or a few individuals‚ such as an oligarchy or a dictatorship. There are many modified forms of democracy that exist‚ but the main
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Parliament and Democracy in the 21st Century Preliminary Report by the Inter-Parliamentary Union Convened by the Inter-Parliamentary Union at United Nations headquarters‚ New York‚ 7 to 9 September 2005 -2- Contents FOREWORD ..................................................................................................................4 1. INTRODUCTION.......................................................................................................5 THE PARLIAMENTARY CONTRIBUTION
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is conducted in accordance with excellence.” (Aristotle‚ N. Ethics 1295a- 25) In terms of Democracy‚ Plato and Aristotle differ extensively. For instance‚ Plato considers Democracy as a fundamentally corrupted form of government‚ where the possession of power rests upon the will of the masses‚ which for Plato are incapable of achieving true knowledge. Conversely‚ Aristotle recognizes Democracy among the best forms of governance. However‚ he argues that democratic rule‚ if exercise in the form
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Elections certainly are a necessary element in a functioning democracy. Elections charachetristcally exist to provide the governed with voice and choice so as to whom they are governed by. Elections although essential are not the only prerequisite to democracy. A successful democracy should have a strong constitution that advocates protection of civil liberties and prescribes a separation of powers. In a democracy elections are vital but a constitution is first and foremost the greater necessity
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Democracy‚ as defined by Polybius‚ was a “regime based on effective rule by the people.” In Polybius’ Histories‚ democracy was not based on each citizen having the ‘right to do whatever they wish or propose’ but true democracy relied on “reverence to the gods‚ succour of parents‚ respect to elders‚ obedience to laws‚ are traditional and habitual‚ in such communities” as well as decisions being decided by the majority. It has been agreed upon by most ancient historians that Rome was not a democracy
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the Distinction between Direct and Representational Democracy The dispute over direct or representational democracy has been a heated discussion for several years. There are some persuasive arguments on either side of the table. Direct democracy lends itself to the conception that the people should decide the law of the land‚ and that the people know fully how to govern. In contrast‚ representational democracy contends that the prevalent individual does not have adequate education about the
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