Mistaking Power for Democracy

As of Saturday, December 17, 2011

I think what’s happening around the world is obvious. The body politic of various countries is protesting, if not in revolt, against established governments that are way out of touch and recalcitrant, stubborn and looking backward.

The U.S., for instance, is doing business as usual, furthering misguidedness, crony politics, power-mongering, posing and out-of-touch ideologies, both liberal and conservative, that insult the intelligence of your average citizen. It takes something like Occupy Wall Street to say simply and clearly what the real deal is. We’re immersed in corruption, one-sidedness, inequality and inertia.

So many governments around the world are frozen in antique ways and styles of governing. The reason is power, so that people have to do a really stupid and desperate thing and take to the streets. What other options are there?

Established governments and dictatorships of every stripe are being harassed by their publics with varying degrees of staid behavior, aggressiveness and violence that get responses from being hauled away, jailed, injured and even killed.

Misuse of power is a serious business. So-called democracies include the U.S. Russia has its middle, professional business class taking to the streets because Putin hasn’t got the sense to know that Russians are simply not going to stand still for his repeated, clownish, ridiculous power grabs.

That goes for all the countries of the “Arab Spring,” with more to come, and our own embarrassing state of affairs that’s way beyond the expiration date for what passes for democracy and governance.

Bob Katrin

Southern Pines

More like this story

The_AnonymusProfit 1 year, 5 months ago

I dont think that the OWS movement totally sums up what this article is about. Possibly the OWS movement has some aspects of the above article, however with their lack of ability to keep their mobilized under control. they lose the ability to send their message.

Popular movements are nothing new in this country. However the murder, rape, civil disobedience, public defication, etc etc, The OWS movement has lost most of its valitidy. We are the citizens all agree that there is something very wrong with not just our country but the world in general. The main issue is no one has yet to give a solution. Many platitudes yes. But no real solution.

I wonder what the above write has in mind for a solution..

There are for this country simple solultions that would make our country operate much better.

Term limits on congress.

A balanced budget amendment.

A return to real capitalism

Citizen laws.

these are just a few simple things that would return our country to the correct path, along with these must come congressional, judicial, and executive reform not just in the federal government but on the state and local levels as well. We have a court that makes laws, that't not right. We have an executive branch that ignores the congress, and a congress who is so uber partizan that nothing can be accomplished.

How do you fix that?

Throw everyone out and elect only citizens. Simple right? If you have ever been political you need not to be elected. Get rid of all of the grandpa stuff and you will find normal people can work together.