Reflections on “Democracy"

   In reading Chomsky of late ⁽¹⁾, I have come across something that somehow gives me some peace of mind regarding the current state of affairs that we find ourselves in. It’s not as if, somewhere along the way, the concept of ‘democracy’ was somehow violated, starting in motion a chain of events that has led up to its current version, in which democratic principles are under increasing attack from, on the one hand, the effects of global capitalism and the implicit third-worldization that becomes an increasing reality for each country that becomes a part of the system (oh yes, including the U.S. too…) and, on the other hand, the current war on terror, which has seen, either as an intentional cause, or, a necessary effect, depending on your interpretation, the withering away of civil liberties embodied in the Bill of Rights.

   For some reason, I have this romantic notion of democracy having existed at one time in a ‘pure’ form, unadulterated by generation after generation of politics in action. And that time for me was the founding of our nation, a time when there was a clean slate upon which to build the fundamental principles of government, to define its role in the lives of the citizenry. Why do I hold such a notion? Probably through education, and the regimentation of the public mind that occurs through the media, for example. We are trained into casting a nostalgic and patriotic eye upon that era of American history, to see it in a warm glow of pride and hubris-the nobility of the founding fathers, as it were. But what did the founding fathers inscribe onto that clean slate, in actuality? It is my hypothesis that the precedents for the current state of democracy that we find ourselves in at present were laid by the founding fathers themselves. No major ‘violations’ of its principles have occurred along the way (with the possible exception of the granting of personal rights to corporations ⁽²⁾ ); rather, the principles of democracy, as laid out by the founding fathers, have been followed all along…

   So in that sense, the current state of affairs has less shock value for me now, because the principles of democracy laid down by our founding fathers are still being followed to this day. Possible lesson? The function of history should not be for the creation of an ideal or romantic image of something which never existed in the first place....

   The necessary question then becomes, well, what does ‘democracy’ mean? Obviously, there is some kind of discrepancy between what ‘we the people’ believe it means, and what it means to those with the power, position, and influence (i.e., money) to govern the country. Again, the Chomskyian methodology comes to mind here, that of examining the difference between ‘doctrine’ and ‘reality’. Even for an idea so sacred and fundamental to American identity, a discrepancy seems to exist. 1) What is that discrepancy? (The answer will require historical investigation…) and 2) Why is it maintained? (Requires a look into the nature of power…) and 3) How is it maintained? (Requires a look into PR, the secular priesthood, educational standards….)

~ Suvian Quilmann


1) Ideas for this essay were inspired by Chomsky’s article, Market Democracy in a Neoliberal Order: Doctrines and Reality, a lecture presented at the University of Cape Town in May of 1997.

2) See David Korten’s When Corporations Rule the World, p. 65-66. Korten tells us that in 1886, in Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad, the precedent was established for corporations to be granted personal rights, including the full protection of the Bill of Rights.