I was amused by whoever it was not long ago that suggested New Zealand is the longest lasting modern democracy because they were the first one to allow people of all races and both genders to vote (in the 1890s). I think it's a nice point which I had NEVER heard suggested before.
I've heard the "we're a republic not a democracy" argument plenty of times (nicely refuted below - your readership has enlightened me twice in the span of like a week!) and plenty of suggestions in recent year's we're sliding into some form of totalitarian police state with a fake democratic veneer.
I voted for 1776, on the grounds that as I understand it the USA was intended to be a representative democracy from the beginning. I could probably be swayed by a good argument that it wasn't really a democracy until at least until we had a Constitution and elected representatives (possibly also including the first presidential election). The grounds would be something to the effect that you're not actually a democracy until you actually set yourselves up an elected government with democratic rules.
As for all the people who say you're not a democracy until all legally defined adults of both genders and all races have the right to vote without being required to own land or otherwise pay for or earn the right to vote...I disagree. Hypocritical, unfair, and of poor quality most likely but still a democracy.
Let's say some sentient space aliens arrive on Earth and are allowed to move in to some open space in Montana. They have decieded to stay and want to be come residents and citizens of the United States. If the US denies them citizenship or grants them citizenship but not voting rights on the grounds that they're not humans, does American suddenly stop being a democracy again until we give those aliens voting rights? I'm sure there are plenty of people who would be as vehemently opposed to being represented in Congress by a Grey as many southerns were to being represented by a black man.
For a less...alien analogy, what if the age of being a legal adult were to be changed from what it is now (18). If it was changed to 21 would we stop being a democracy? If it was changed to 16 would we have to revised us being democractic till the point where 16 year olds could vote? What about other democratic countries with a different legal adult age? Are they more/less democratic than us because they have a different definition of what makes an adult and thus a voter/person?
My point is that a democracy is about people having elected representatives. Key word is PEOPLE. If your society considers women and blacks as not as much of a person as a man, you need to progress but you're still being democratic because what your society considers to be a person is getting represented.
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I've heard the "we're a republic not a democracy" argument plenty of times (nicely refuted below - your readership has enlightened me twice in the span of like a week!) and plenty of suggestions in recent year's we're sliding into some form of totalitarian police state with a fake democratic veneer.
I voted for 1776, on the grounds that as I understand it the USA was intended to be a representative democracy from the beginning. I could probably be swayed by a good argument that it wasn't really a democracy until at least until we had a Constitution and elected representatives (possibly also including the first presidential election). The grounds would be something to the effect that you're not actually a democracy until you actually set yourselves up an elected government with democratic rules.
As for all the people who say you're not a democracy until all legally defined adults of both genders and all races have the right to vote without being required to own land or otherwise pay for or earn the right to vote...I disagree. Hypocritical, unfair, and of poor quality most likely but still a democracy.
Let's say some sentient space aliens arrive on Earth and are allowed to move in to some open space in Montana. They have decieded to stay and want to be come residents and citizens of the United States. If the US denies them citizenship or grants them citizenship but not voting rights on the grounds that they're not humans, does American suddenly stop being a democracy again until we give those aliens voting rights? I'm sure there are plenty of people who would be as vehemently opposed to being represented in Congress by a Grey as many southerns were to being represented by a black man.
For a less...alien analogy, what if the age of being a legal adult were to be changed from what it is now (18). If it was changed to 21 would we stop being a democracy? If it was changed to 16 would we have to revised us being democractic till the point where 16 year olds could vote? What about other democratic countries with a different legal adult age? Are they more/less democratic than us because they have a different definition of what makes an adult and thus a voter/person?
My point is that a democracy is about people having elected representatives. Key word is PEOPLE. If your society considers women and blacks as not as much of a person as a man, you need to progress but you're still being democratic because what your society considers to be a person is getting represented.
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