Chasing Democracy: where has it gone

Chasing Democracy: where has it gone

 

Democracy has become an elusive term amongst those empowered to guard its basic principles. Historical references note when a country deviates from the foundations which made it strong, its downfall was not far behind. Edward Gibbon’s masterful work, The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, illustrates how weakness, social decay and over-taxation were the final hammers that caused this nation-state to dismember. Gibbon’s eighteenth century masterpiece would not be so different had he written about 21^st century America. Shadows similar to those cast by Rome’s toxic management of its populous, are evident in our present day society. America’s military once had the ability to fight wars on multiple fronts, has been diminished by a central government that puts our defense last. Our border protection has now become a convenient joke for the denizens of late night media. Men have been demasculinized, replaced with the embodiment of a unisexual being whose efficacy falls short of his original form. The nuclear family structure, once the strongest institution in the nation, has degenerated into single parent households with the government’s blessings. Divisive leadership has stirred up race hatred, economic bigotry and partitioned communities leaving desolation behind. Detroit exemplifies the collective elements of the latter circumstances. Taxation has become the folly of the fools that govern us no matter where they sit. Unable to bring economic leadership to the forefront, their only answer is more taxes. Recently, a huge tax increase was inflicted on the nation by an Administration whose ineptitude does not allow it to master the budgetary process. Decreased spending is an anathema to those who must use economic parlor tricks to stay in power. The same Administration also orchestrated the sequestration in exchange for a higher debt ceiling, now chides the opposing party for its results. No matter where you look, the underpinnings of America Democracy have been derided, diluted and or extinguished from view. Weakness, overregulation, economic duress and immorality define the embodiment of today’s America. As a result of the pandemonium moving through society from these deficiencies, socialism a distant cousin to democracy, has emerged to take hold of our institutions. Revitalization of democratic principles will take a person with the inner strength and versatility to confront  the insidious maneuvers now occurring in the back corridors of Washington, that person is yet to be defined. Mark Davis MD, platomd@gmail.com, www.healthnetsreviewservices.com, Author of Demons of Democracy and the forthcoming book, Obamacare: Dead on Arrival, A Prescription for Disaster.