Concepts of Democracy

Worth of the individual People are considered unique and valued by a democracy. A person’s rights (life, liberty, and happiness) are the basis for free thought and action in a democracy. The gov’t can dictate laws that apply to all regardless of their individual beliefs. (Paying taxes or obeying traffic laws.)

Equality of all persons Equality has been defined to be: Equal opportunity provided, and equality of justice in the Constitution. This concept has been used to argue that gov’t should provide equal “conditions” for all people or that all should have an “equal share of goods”. (Gay marriage, Welfare, Head Start) Its correct application is that people have freedom to rise to whatever level they can achieve regardless of race, gender, or religion.

Majority Rule, Minority Rights In a political sense Democracy means majority rule, (winning elections requires majority). Democracy does not guarantee the majority will always make the “wisest” decisions. (Slavery, abortion, social security) A state must protect the views and rights of minorities (not just racial) to insure democracy remains. If the majority is allowed to crush the minority, then it’s a dictatorship.

Compromise Public policy is give-and-take among the law-makers. The compromises that are reached dictate the outcomes and effects on citizens who may not have any input except for voting power. (Paying for public roads?) Special Interest Groups affect the outcomes in Washington D.C. everyday on almost every law. (Teachers, labor unions, and many minority groups give money to politicians in exchange for support.)

Individual Rights Your rights are not absolute. This means you cannot do “anything” you want. It must not infringe on others. This means rights are “relative”. Justice Holmes once said this about relative rights, “The right to swing my fist ends where the other man’s nose begins.” The gov’t must strike a balance between these individual rights and the needs of society.