On Democracy

1480. If social media were an expensive service, there would be much less of it, and potentially less democracy as well. But social media is only an illusion of a more effective democracy: it worked okay all along without it.

1422. When some people of the same generation were deeply involved in the moment (for example, 1968), everyone else just went on with their lives as if nothing had changed. There is a persistent hope in democracy that things will ultimately get worked out in the next election cycle. But the species is on auto-pilot with an unchangeable route (root)--and the polar opposite, a political landscape that is constantly changing. Artists and writers are more observant of it. (11/2017)

March 2003

1270. Every two or four years we get the chance to throw someone out of office. But there is no governance left in democracy by anyone or any party without a real zeitgeist. What's next? Perhaps it's time to incorporate machine intelligence into politics. An AI might have more heart and soul as well as intelligence. Or it could be worse, as there would be no one to blame. (11/9/2016)

1216. The Spruce Goose, the Edsel, the A380 and perhaps the Tesla all are the same tech tropes. Even the Concorde, that was a very good technology, set air travel back several decades after its demise. We can innovate and build, but innovation might have a short run for various reasons, then eventually will get dialed back. [Democracy is a kind of 'technology.'] (9/2016)

0453. If Iraqis really wanted freedom, it is conceivable that they could have gotten it on their own without our intervention. It also begs the question of how they will manage to keep democracy once we've gotten it for them. If freedom is not achieved by the volition of the Iraqi people, then how can they appreciate the value of a democratic society? Do they really want the American version? Is the American version the default version? America can survive the collisions of liberal and conservatives, but will Iraq be able to endure the shifts of its own political and cultural fault lines? (11/2005)

0443. Why should democracy be an end in itself? What's beyond democracy?

0258(04). Democracy made TV possible. TV made democracy vulnerable.

0120. You can't have a true democracy without a Muddy Waters, Elvis, and The Beatles. Hopefully all the nations that the U.S. wants to 'build' will experience these phenomena as well.

0118. Democracy assumes liberalism. The more conservative you become, the less democracy you have, as there are more constraints.


0116. Democracy has contention built into it: one side contends that their version is better, and the other side disagrees, sometimes vehemently. Democracy doesn't necessarily conflate with peace, as most people are wont to believe.

0060. Give a country democracy, and they make one just like the American version, with the same types of TV shows.


0053. When you promote the idea of democracy, you increase the chances of the rise of artistic movements, as democracy provides the perfect environment for ideas and innovation.