May The People Rule!
The falsehood of “democracy” is shattering. What is true leadership?
Most of us were taught at an early age that democracy, the rule of the people, was a sacred value to be cherished and protected much like freedom, justice and equality. But we seldom ask ourselves what democracy really means, and how can we check if our system of government indeed represents and serves “the will of the people”.
The political events that transpired during the last administration, and especially those of 2020, culminating in the recent presidential elections, provide a clear-cut answer to this question. The US is a deeply divided nation, torn into two camps (with many additional subdivisions) that not only disagree with, but also bitterly distrust and resent each other. Their political representatives and the media that supports them employ rhetoric and tactics filled with polarization and hatred, intended to delegitimize and destroy the “other” camp. While they use fake slogans of “concern for the people” it is apparent that their only concern is gaining more power, whatever the cost. Along the way they greatly damage previously respected institutions, such as the presidency, the congress, the senate, the constitution, and the justice system. Today it is abundantly clear that neither Biden, nor Trump had he won the elections, can serve as the president of the “United“ States of America.
The term hemicracy may best capture the current situation. Literally hemicracy (from Greek hemi = half, cratos = rule) means a situation where one half of the population makes decisions for the entire population.
Democracies Divided
This scenario is not unique to the US. In my home country of Israel we are heading into our 4th elections in a period of two years, a result of what seems like an unbreakable stalemate between two large political blocs. As I watch the demonstrations and read the venomous posts on social media I can feel the levels of tension, frustration and hostility rising, and wonder painfully how will the growing chasms ever be bridged.
In 2016, after years of debate and political upheaval the United Kingdom held a widely contested referendum on the Brexit question. In summary 17,410,742 voters, 51.89% of the total, were in favor of the UK leaving the European union, while 16,141,241 voters, 48.11% were in favor of the UK remaining a member of the European union. Following this narrow “win” the Brexit wheels were set in motion. As the map below shows, the “desire of the people” was quite different in the different countries and regions comprising the UK. In England and Wales the majority was in favor of leaving, while in Scotland and Northern Ireland the majority was in favor of remaining.
In a recent book Democracies Divided editors Thomas Carothers and Andrew O’Donohue examine “the fissures that are dividing societies and the factors bringing polarization to a boil”, offering in-depth case studies of countries as wide-ranging as Brazil, India, Kenya, Turkey, Israel, Hungary, Poland, and the United States.
If you look for this book on Amazon you will be told that:
The Falsehood of “Democracy”
At the time of the 2020 elections the US population was estimated at 323 million. The voting age population (US residents aged 18 or older) was 257 million. Only 239 million of those were eligible to vote. Of those eligible, only 203 million registered to vote, and an estimated 159 million actually cast their ballots. So the 84 million votes for the “winner” represent about a 1/3 of the potential voters and a 1/4 of the total population. The “loser” of the elections typically gets a slightly lower number of votes, representing a similarly sized segment of the population. Of course in the US elections because of the too-unreasonable-to-explain electoral system it is entirely possible that the winner actually got fewer votes than the loser, but he has spread his chips (money, media etc) wisely on the so called key states and counties…
Regardless, the winners (much less than a half) get to rule over the losers and the non-participants, until the next round of the “democratic elections game”. And more and more they use their power egoistically with complete lack of sympathy and consideration to the needs of others or the greater whole.
Does anyone still believe that our current system in any way represents the rule of the people?
To get a more emotional feel for how distorted and absurd this is, let’s consider a common example we are all familiar with. Our family, which in my case includes me, my wife and our two sons, is trying to reach a decision on some issue, such as where we will have our next vacation. Two of us prefer option A, while the other two prefer option B. What do we do?
Well, of course we don’t start fighting and hating each other. We also don’t settle for voting and forcing the majority view on the minority. If there were five of us an option that only three of us would support and the other two would dislike would still be unacceptable. Instead we start to look for common ground. While each of us would still like their wishes to be granted, we are also willing to make concessions and be flexible, and we do our best to find a solution that everyone would feel good about. This is democracy in action in a family.
The Rule of The People
As we witness democracies across the globe become increasing divided and polarized, some conclusions are inevitable. The first is that this phenomenon cannot be attributed to any single person, political party or belief system. This is yet another facet of the disintegration of human society, and the root cause is the same: our own nature.
We are all self-centered and subjective, and inherently we can never agree on anything, nor convince or subdue each other. And thus the second conclusion is that we must learn how to connect, integrate, and solve problems above the differences between us. In fact we can be sure that the differences will remain and even grow, and so we need to figure out what “equality” means in an integrated system comprised of vastly diverse, seemingly incompatible parts.
Luckily we have a great example to learn from: Nature itself. Look closely at the universe, our planet, or even our own human body and you will see a myriad of molecules, cells, organs, with complex and often conflicting structures, functions and roles. Yet miraculously they collaborate to sustain and improve the well being of the system of which they are parts, each receiving what it needs, each contributing to the whole. If we build human society in such a way, we will become worthy rulers of our world.
True democracy is not about politics, parties, elections, or voting. It is about unity. A true leader is one who cares for everyone, not only for those who voted for him or her, at the expense of those who didn’t. True government must be based on the fundamental tenet that we are all different, yet we are all connected. What we need to change is not our political systems or balloting procedures, but rather our basic values, our beliefs, our perception of reality.
Let’s “vote” together. For hope. For unity. For mankind.
