I am afraid that I am not entirely optimistic about the future of democracy. As you know, "most Americans subscribe to both democracy and capitalism." (Draper 385) These high expectations can be hard to live up to. I envision that in the future we will no longer have two political parties, I think that we will soon have an independent party that attempts to reform our entire system and that they will probably have a lot of public support. I do think that this is realistic because while I do think that democracy is a wonderful idea I'm not sure that we operate a democracy in the best way that we can. The feeling in our democracy right now is one of distrust and non-participation. It seems that the more people get frustrated with what is going on in our country the less they are willing to participate. This does not bode well for the future of our democracy.
As I've said before in this class, I do not think that the form of democracy that we have here is really a true form of democracy. In fact, I think that "most Americans subscribe to both democracy and capitalism." (Draper 385) Too many things like lobbyists, bank bailouts, huge tax cuts for big corporations and occupying countries without approval of Congress are not according to the true form of democracy. "Understanding how the country's democracy currently falls short need not produce a cynical or resigned view that little can be done to challenge concentrations and uneven distribution of wealth and power," (Draper 392) This is not easily accomplished but so important because we need each other more than ever right now.
However, there is no reason to lose all hope: "while our democracy remains rickety and our ruling elites remain unable to distinguish between public funds and private purposes, we take these baby steps as a sign that we will eventually get it right." (Olojede)
Critical Question: Do you think that the U.S. needs a public relations "face lift?" Do you think this could help for the rest of the world to view the U.S. in a more positive light?
Draper, Alan. The Politics of Power a Critical Introduction to American Government. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2011. Olojede, Dele. "Fair Vote, Fragile Future." New York Times. nytimes.com 21 April. 2011. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/22/opinion/22olojede.html.
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