Voters in 19 countries, including in three of the world’s largest democracies, are widely skeptical about whether their political elections are free and fair, and many favor a strong, undemocratic leader, according to a study released Thursday.
The report by the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance, or International IDEA, concluded that “democratic institutions are falling short of people’s expectations.” The 35-member organization promotes democracy worldwide.
”It is past time that people’s perceptions are centered in conversations about the future of democracy; this analysis is a small but important first step towards that effort,” the Stockholm-based organization wrote.
The surveys had a margin of error hovering around 2-4% and the number of respondents in each country was around 1,500. The sole exception was the Solomon Islands, where the small population meant they had a representative sample of 526 people, IDEA said.
I wonder what the split would be for a dictator doing what I want vs going against what I want
Everyone assumes the dictator would be doing what they want.
My last Suzerain playthrough I was a dictator. I managed to change the constitution to give me a bunch of power, with that I got rid of all the corruption either politically or…“discreetly”. Nationalised all the corporations, reformed workers and women’s rights, balanced taxation of the rich and poor, removed racism from the government, crippled the nationalists, improved free healthcare, gave higher education opportunity to the poor, aligned with the communist superpower, and brought peace to the region by exposing aggressors diplomatically, which in turn boosted trade with other nations and improved the economy.
Everyone was happy.
All this took was a heap of shady shit until I was in control and a whole lot of, “It’ll get better. Trust me.” with the citizens.
In the real world the benevolence lasts until the next leader takes over and uses that consolidated power to turn it into an authoritarian hellhole.
Or it ends even sooner, as when you stop doing the shady shit the people benefiting from the shady shit will overthrow you and have someone else double down on the shady shit.
Yeah, they say power corrupts, but it is because the corrupt seek power and will use corruption to get and keep power.
You can’t fight corruption with bare-knuckled honesty and a plucky devotion to fair-play. There are two ways to fight corruption, with overwhelming force and zero tolerance, or with more crafty corruption.
But the line between zero tolerance and despotism is thin and wavy.
Yeah, I figured post-game and at the end of my reign, I either have to install another like me or dissolve all powers I used for good, return to democracy, and hope it all kept working out peachy.
A return to democracy won’t work because they already associate authoritarianism with benevolence. Trying to hand it to someone else rarely worked out for the few nobility that were better than average.
Honestly people will ruin whatever after a few generations when they don’t see the negstives anymore.
Honestly people will ruin whatever after a few generations when they don’t see the negstives anymore.
Why am I still paying those IT security folk? We haven’t had any data leaks in years!
Well, my character at least had a finger snap moment in history where everyone on that empire of dirt was happy and well-looked after.
Maybe he did the right thing and launched the nukes on his death bed so everyone else got to die happy as well. One last authoritarian action of goodwill.
Exactly,
I never thought the leopards would eat my face
Democracy and money don’t mix. And as long as we’re attached to money, we’ll never have a democracy that isn’t contaminated by it.
Ugh. Just a reminder that Bernie Sanders made repealing citizens united, and campaign finance reform one of his main platforms for each presidential run. He would have done so much good. His lampooning by neo-liberals who are devoted more to order than justice, forever stains my opinion of them and their institutions.
I feel like that’s less of a democracy issue, and more of an issue that people with power will use that power for their own benefit.
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Democracy and Russian propaganda don’t mix very well either.
It’s no secret that some people crave being ordered around. It’s just sad that there are so many of them.
They crave non-responsibility
So do I but I don’t go around bootlicking
There is no freedom of choice without responsibility. Authoritarian power structures take the extreme opposite stance: you are free from responsibility so long as you fulfill the letter of the law/your orders (and therefore have very few real choices).
It’s a black and white system of morality. As long as you do what you’re told, there’s no need to ask difficult, confusing philosophical questions.
So, to those allergic to deep thought, it’s quite appealing because suddenly the world makes sense. Even if it can be cruel, everything is neatly, cleanly delineated.
To those of us who prefer to think in detail and see shades of gray, it’s horrifying.
I’m just trying to understand my enemies.
I wonder if this is some religious predisposition. A lot of people around the world are primed to accept the authority from “The One True God.” I bet that aligns with a lot of authoritarian ideals.
democracy failing because leaders selling out so hard to corporations that the people consider other alternatives should be what the headline is
citizens should not be blamed for why the leaders and the country sucks
the bought and paid politicians should be blamed
Between the housing crisis, economical hardships, ecological collapse and whatever else I’m forgetting about, it’s a bit strange to be surprised at people’s faith being shaken in democracy. Since none of those issues have been seriously addressed pretty much anywhere.
That’s one of the things why I do not like direct democracy!
Constitution and the system of checks and balances is intended to limit the possibility of a politician gaining enough power to become a dictator.
