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previous issue
issue #4, posted 2 /2 / 2010
archive of all issues
Democracy vs. Authoritarianism
in the news: "Crying for Freedom: Democracy's
Decline" (article in The Economist, January16-22 2010
issue)
"The cause of liberal democracy is not merely suffering political
reverses, it is also in intellectual retreat...Authoritarian regimes are
not just more numerous; they are more confident and influential."
commentary and analysis (by Stephen P. Cook, founder and manager, project Worldview, www.projectworldview.org):
| Worldview Themes Valued
by Democracies |
Relevant Commentary and
Quotes |
| #31
Education for Democracy |
"Democracy
is built on... a feedback process in which citizen voters
voice approval or disapproval—the effectiveness of which is aided
by free inquiry (theme #30) and education. (from The
Worldview Literacy Book, by Stephen P. Cook)
"Free elections
also mean that policy mistakes, even bad ones, are more quickly corrected.
Fresh ideas can be brought in and politicians thrown out before they grow
too arrogant." (from "Crying for Freedom: Democracy's
Decline" The Economist, January16-22 2010)
"Believers in democracy as an engine of progress often make the point
that a climate of freedom is most needed in a knowledge-based economy,
where independent thinking and innovation are vital." (from "Crying for Freedom: Democracy's
Decline" The Economist, January16-22 2010)
|
| #30
Intellectual Freedom |
| #19
Economic Individualism |
"Democracy has never endured in countries with mainly non-market
economies. The existence of an overweening state machine that meddles in
everything can tempt leaders to use it against their political foes. Total
control of the economy also sucks the air away from what Istvan Bibo...called “the little circles of
freedom”—the free associations and independent power centres that a
free economy allows." (from "Crying for Freedom: Democracy's
Decline" The Economist, January16-22 2010) |
| #21A
Populism
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"...[common
people are] "the most honest and safe... depository of the
public interests" Thomas Jefferson
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#37A
Proud Identification
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"Democracy... is more likely to succeed in countries with a
shared feeling of belonging together, without strong cultural or ethnic
fissures that can easily turn political conflict into the armed sort.
Better positioned are 'people so fundamentally at one that they can
safely afford to bicker,' as Lord Balfour, a 19th-century British
politician, said." (from
"Crying for Freedom: Democracy's
Decline" The Economist, January16-22 2010) |
| #32
Valuing Human Rights |
"Democracy may not yield perfect
policies, but it ought to guard against all manner of ills, ranging from
outright tyranny (towards which a “mild” authoritarian can always
slide) to larceny at the public expense." (from
"Crying for Freedom: Democracy's
Decline" The Economist, January16-22 2010) |
| Worldview Themes
Disdained by Democracies |
Relevant Commentary and
Quotes |
| #20B
Authoritarianism
|
"...a culture of compromise—coupled with greater accountability and
limits on state power—means that democracies are better able to avoid
catastrophic mistakes, or criminal cruelty." (from "Crying for Freedom: Democracy's
Decline" The Economist, January16-22 2010)
"Tyrannies may look stable under one strongman; but they can slide into
instability, even bloody chaos, if a transition goes awry." (from "Crying for Freedom: Democracy's
Decline" The Economist, January16-22 2010)
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| #2B
I Know What's Best For You
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| #9B Apocalypticism
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