The Death Of Democracy - The Birth Of Diversitocracy?

WorldNews Guest Writer Beverly Darling.

Tragically, yet ironically, the U.S.-Iraqi War has exposed the death of democracy. As President Bush delivered his third ‘damage-control’ speech from the birthplace of the U.S. Constitution and lectured the Middle East about the overrated and glorified democratic process in America, he created more questions than he answered. If the U.S. is the democratic expert of the world, why does Saddam Hussein have a right to cast his vote in Iraq while hundreds of thousands of lesser criminals and parolees in America are excluded from the voting process? How can young men in Iran as early as the age of thirteen vote, while millions of youth in the U.S. are locked out of the democratic process until they turn eighteen? Why does Iraq’s Constitution safeguard a certain percentage of women to be elected to the parliament while women in the U.S. are still a small minority in Congress? Why do some countries have greater representation, based on the elected official-citizen ration, than in America. And finally, is the U.S. really a free and democratic society as Mr. Bush claims?

The term democracy is never used in the U.S. Constitution or Declaration of Independence. The founding fathers of America, in the historical context of violent and sometimes extreme movements and revolutions throughout Europe, feared mob violence and the rule of the majority. As the elite aristocratic white male landowners in the newly formed States of America prevented the poor, landless, women, and minorities from voting, they also implemented constitutional structures and defense mechanisms that protected their land holdings and riches while excluding the ’uneducated and ignorant’ masses. For example, the electoral college was initiated as a bulwark against the direct vote and consensus of the majority and is still used in the presidential election. Over one third, six of the seventeen amendments to the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights, deal strictly with racial, gender, and poverty suffrage issues. As millions of Americans fought and thousands died for the right to vote, the ruling class became more sophisticated in their exclusionary tactics. Today through unlawful redistricting and the destruction of poor and minority voting blocks, stuffing the ballot box, buying votes, jamming telephone lines, illegal campaign contributions, a paper-less electronic voting trail, corporate-military media manipulation, and corruption at the highest levels of government, millions of Americans are cut off and have developed indifference towards the electoral process. More than fifty percent of eligible voters usually refuse to go to the polls during a presidential election. Third political parties and their candidates are discredited by a two-totalitarian system and millions of Americans feel hopeless in the face of a cold and calculating political machine.

How would President Bush define democracy? What type of democracy does Mr. Bush want to force onto the regions of the Middle East and Iraq? For Mr. Bush, democracy consists of the powerful and a privileged dynastical order. Mr. Bush’s democracy listens only to the needs of major corporate and Pentagon contractors and close friends. Government access is given only to those who are willing to pay for thousand dollar dinners. In President Bush’s democracy, the state and megalopolies are more important than the people. Over half of Congress and every cabinet director in the Bush Administration are millionaires. Corruption is so rampant that many prominent politicians have been indicted and are currently being investigated for insider trading, receiving illegal monies for campaigns, accepting bribes from military corporations, and stealing millions of dollars from Native American Tribes and other minority groups. The media pundits are also part of this plutocratic order as they constantly control and manipulate the population inducing them to become passive entertained consumers instead of participatory energized citizens. In this environment where the wealthy rule and freedom of the press belongs to those who own it, many Americans have become indebted and even now sacrifice their lives to a permanent war and corporate dominated economy. This stealth political system allows only two choices, war and more war. The U.S., with its war in Iraq and the War on Terrorism, has proven that EVEN in a democracy citizens can be subservient to a ruthless and omnipotent state that constantly manufactures insecurity, enemies, invasions, and wars for its own survival and existence. Democracy, like many other archaic forms of government, has failed in America and will fail globally. Is there a better way?

In order for a political system to achieve, it must allow governmental opportunities for everyone. A diversitocracy will hopefully accomplish this as it evolves out of the ashes of democracy. Diversitocracy is a combination of pluralism and democracy. In a diversitocracy, power and authority is distributed and shared by and among various groups that represent a given country. A percentage of political positions and seats would be allotted on the basis of gender, ethnicity, age, economic status, religions, and even possibly career and occupations. Fair and frequent elections would continue to be promoted as people vote directly and share a political voice in important issues and governmental policies. Imagine if half of the U.S. Congress consisted of women? What if thirty-five percent of the Congress were minorities? Since minorities account for a large portion of the military, there would probably be less military action and more monetary investment. A larger percentage of the government would consist of younger adults. What if Congress only had one percent of its members millionaires while the majority would consist of the poor and working class? Can you picture the U.S. government consigned to farmers, teachers, social and health care workers, laborers, artists, and service sector workers instead of retired CEO’s, lawyers, and corporate-military leaders. As ultimate political authority is redistributed to the people of America, there would be less spending on futile wars and greater funding for education, health, and social programs. A diversitocracy would also expand the concept of representation and reflect more accurately an varied population. Many Americans do not realize that the original second amendment to the Bill of Rights, before it was deleted by the wealthy federalists, proposed one elected official for every thirty thousand people. The adoption of this amendment would have created an America today that would have approximately ten thousand representatives. The reasoning behind this amendment was to prevent monopolies and monies from corrupting government officials since there would be to numerous. This amendment would have also produced a multiplicity of ideas and greater discussion about local and national policies in Congress as representatives would have been more plentiful and in closer proximity to their constituents. With modern day computers and transportation systems, this large representative body could easily be an affective governing body and a reality. A diversitocracy would not only protect the individuality-casting a secret vote, secure liberty-freedom of thought and conscience, but also increase the equality-emphasizing the worth of each person, and fraternity-instead of misusing freedom for personal gain or selfish ambition citizens would cooperate for the good of the people and society. The fundamental basis of a diversitocracy would also consist of an educational system founded on the principles of tolerance, respect, active participation, and equality for all. This same political model could also be applied to the UN, especially with such organizations as the WTO, IMF, World Bank, and Security Council.

As President Bush lectured the Sunnis on learning a lesson about democracy and participation, Mr. Bush, himself, could learn an important lesson: democracies cannot exist where the rich, elite, and powerful rule. Although a diversitocracy is not a perfect political system, it would definitely improve on the democratic facade in America. Of course it would require him and several others to relinquish their monopoly on autocratic power. But then true patriotism and love for one’s country is about the right for everyone to enjoy life, liberty, property, and pursue happiness without injuring others. In view of the U.S.-Iraqi War and as the leader of an out-of-step rogue nation, this is one lesson President Bush cannot afford to over-step or overlook.

Link Here