by Cameron Chapman

Created on: February 04, 2007   Last Updated: May 19, 2007

Many forms of Government have been tried, and will be tried in this world of sin and woe. No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise. Indeed, it has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except all those other forms that have been tried from time to time. -Sir Winston Churchill

Democracy, indeed, is not a perfect system. It has it's positive and negative aspects, and also varies from country to country in it's successes and failures.

In a perfect world, democracy would be unnecessary. People would simply do what's right, what's needed, and what is in the best interest of themselves and their neighbors. Unfortunately, this is not often (if ever) the case.

A perfect democratic system would listen to the majority while taking into account the feelings and lives of the minority. Everyone would be involved in government, and would take a vested interest in the way that their government works. There would be oversight of the elected officials, and there would be checks and balances to make sure that no one part of government would have more power than they should (as the current U.S. democratic system is set up). One of the keys to democracy is the will and passion of the people. The people have to want democracy to work in order for it to work.

If the people have no vested interest in a democratic government, then that government will fail. Every functioning democracy in the world started with a revolution. In Switzerland, Russia, the United States, Great Britain and France, the people revolted against a monarchy or republic to form a democracy controlled by the people. There have been violent and non-violent revolutions, and both seem to be equally effective. But I cannot think of a single functional and effective democracy that did not come from an uprising of the people living in that country.

In the end, it must be the will of the people in a country in order for democracy to work in that country. It may not be the best method out there, but it seems to be the most effective method we have figured out.

Learn more about this author, Cameron Chapman.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.