Three Paradoxes of Democracy Essay - 678 Words

Three Paradoxes of Democracy 1. Consent vs. effectiveness 2. Conflict vs. Consensus 3. Representation vs. Governability Whats effective may not be what is popular -economic policies are a good example Ââ€" hyperinflation and other painful unpopular reforms -even in established democracies you are thinking about getting elected not long term policies Examples: • Free trade Ââ€" job loss • Terrorism Ââ€" loss of personal liberties • Deficit spending Ââ€" people like low taxes but also like government programs • Environmental issues Conflict vs. Consensus: debate needs to happen but shouldnt go too far (need a healthy medium) Ââ€" people still need to trust and follow their governments decisions Representation vs. Governability: local†¦show more content†¦doesnt indicate relative importance of various points evaluations have to be considered in contextÂ…irregularities resulting from deficits in tech. capacity or experience are less serious than deliberate attempts to manipulate the resultsÂ…have to reflect the will of the people and can not be considered as an isolate eventÂ…instead they must be considered as a part of the democratization process ALSOÂ…electoral assessment is separate from an analysis of political consequences of that assessment Ââ€" 2 different types of activities carried out by two different people Przeworski Ââ€" is it a democracy or a dictatorship? Those who govern must be elected through contested elections 4 Rules: 1. Chief Executive must be elected 2. Legislature must be elected 3. There must be more than one party contesting elections 4. Alteration Rule Ââ€" if ruling party had not lost election since 1990 Ââ€" at some point gov. party must have lost an election But 4 causes problems Ââ€" if good gov. Ââ€" keep voting them inÂ…isnt it still a democracy Vanhanen Ââ€" democracy involves competition and participation 100 - % won by largest party % voter turnout Whats going on hereÂ…voter turnout sucksÂ…only two parties representing on the national scale These values may seem importantÂ…but are they? Face validity- how well measure(variable) measures what its supposed to measure Free and fairÂ… Free Ââ€" do you have the right to chose one over the other? 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