The OS for Western democracies is broken, it needs urgent rebooting
Francis Fukuyama famously declared the “end of History” in 1989 when communism was supposedly vanquished by the superiority of Western-style capitalism and liberal democracy. George H. W. Bush articulated a New World Order that was supposed to bring peace and prosperity to the many by projecting “our” model of advanced civilization.
Just by sticking to facts it’s clear that the decades since have seen a glass half full where billions have been lifted from poverty but there’s been an accelerating increase in chaos in our Western democracies, befallen by corrupt politics and apathetic voters.
The time is now for a global wake-up call for a reboot of the OS of our broken democracies, without one, it’s difficult to see our current institutions prepare the 22nd century.
15 years into this century Western-style democracies’ support has been sapped by the incestuous corruption of their political and business elites and the inflexibility of our institutions, often too slow to act and enact significant change. Tough authoritarian systems such as China and Russia, even the milder ones such as Singapore, project the ability to solve complex issues by decisive and speedy action without counterbalances. The list of butchered reforms and apathy at the hands of our democratic institutions in North America and Europe is much too long: the stewardship of the environment and the actions to counter climate change, the ability to build an economic system more adapted to our times, show the world that democracies born of the Enlightenment are no longer models too follow.
Inept politicians bent on blocking reforms to score points (the US Congress under both parties), under-elected political leaders who govern with less than a third of actual electoral support and who plunge below 20% (France’s Hollande), antiquated electoral systems fit for the 18th century which clash with voter aspirations (Canada), all underscore the necessity to deeply reform our institutions, our democratic OS, to the core.
Lawrence Lessig’s work with Rootstrikers and his 2016 political campaign are a welcome sign that MUST be emulated in other democracies beyond the United States. If the people of North America, Europe and the newer, less rooted democracies in South America, Africa and Asia, do not see significant change, it is not overly pessimistic to think that we are headed for more authoritarian times, with consequences to the people’s welfare. We are already seeing the first signs of the fork in the road, with the return of inequality at levels unseen since the 19th century and oligarchic tendencies taking stock even in the United States. The opportunity to reboot, rebuild our democratic institutions is here, it must be seized NOW. One avenue is to revisit the electoral process to ensure that voter participation at less than 50% is not the norm.
The impact of technology will help but the fundamental building blocks ie the constitutions that govern our countries must be adapted to our times. In the US, divided government is the bedrock of the constitution but it must be said that this division, coupled with toxic primary politics and unlimited spending by business interests and unions renders any kind of reform or political project nearly impossible to pass. The Canadian electoral process, a first past the post system where governments are elected by less than a third of the electorate, is a good example of what needs to be amended for the 21st century. Mexico, a recent addition to democracies, no longer has single-party rule but keeps battling oligarchic tendencies. The major South American democracies, Argentina and Brazil, are struggling against corruption and the difficulty to maintain a pace of change amidst the emerging market slowdown.
The European Union’s Eurogroup, which former Greek Finance minister Yanis Varoufakis refers to as a “medieval secret society”, is the poster child for what’s wrong with the European project: unelected, secretive, and contemptuous of electoral results. France is currently governed by a president elected by default and almost universally panned at less than 20% of positive opinions in polling. The UK reelected the Tories but David Cameron is also working hard to maintain his approval ratings. Germany’s Merkel is a rare example of a political leader able to sustain a close link to the electorate.
Most Western-style democracies are currently struggling to maintain a delicate balance between providing the framework for its peoples to flourish and preparing the future. Citizen-led grassroots efforts need to be launched to solidify our democracies, which are more fragile than we care to admit.
