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Democracy: Alive in America

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Democracy: Alive in America?
Everyone is nervously awaiting the final decision of the year 2000 Presidential election with George W. Bush and Al A. Gore running closely side by side. There was debate in the legitimacy of the electoral votes cast in Florida earlier in time, so the suspense rising in America’s final decision is enormous. Looks like Gore holds this trophy for popular votes with a close 543,895 votes winning over Bush. According to previous elections, Gore has this competition conquered, the results come in; George W. Bush is our new president! With a slim win by 5 electoral votes, Bush is our new president. Wait a second, popular vote is that not the votes of qualified voters of the population? In America today, political decisions are decided democratically by its residents. Although Al Gore won the popular vote, George Bush is still the decided president. Then what is democracy, where did it come from, is our current democratic society a progression or is it a regression of democracy’s evolution? America has a government decided by the population of America; at least that is of the idea of a democratic society. Let us then compare American democracy to where democracy was created. The reason why everyone votes is to make a unanimous decision of who will become the leaders of a country. Democracy is just that, a government where the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or indirectly through a system of representation. Joseph states in his book Homo Sapience: “Senates successfully administered a nation for the benefit of the people with the mandate that was delegated out by the residents for a limited term”. This creation of democracy originated in ancient Greece. The Greek word for democracy, demokratia, literally translates into “power by the people” (Encyclopedia of the Ancient Greek World, Revised Edition). Athenian government was very different to the rest of the ancient world in the way of the underprivileged populace directing who came into power rather than the wealthy. Therefore, all adult male Athenian citizens, known as the “Academy”, were welcome to take part in the sovereign governing body. Including only adult males does not seem all that democratic, because it does not include the entire population in the decision of who becomes the head of state.
Rulers of Greece however, wanted to keep the involvement of the citizens who had a part in the structure of Greece as an entire country. Although, this collection of people did not include everyone: women and parts of the lower class, it was still beneficial for everyone. Even though the poor urban class did not have a direct influence on the leadership of the acting government, it benefited them politically in turn benefiting them professionally by creating more and actively keeping jobs. Mainly, the reason behind democracy was to discourage resistance towards the acting government by benefiting the entire country inequitably, everyone was not included, but somehow benefiting by this form of government.
A council of Athens upper and middleclass citizens would periodically meet to discuss laws and other public affairs. These discussions would normally take place in auditoriums known as Arenas. The governing body such as directors of civic architecture also consisted of Athenian citizens. This governing body was elected democratically through a select lottery of capable men for the particular position. The form of government that Greece created sounded fair and systemically beneficial. However, there were downfalls to this new idea of government that eventually lead to the downfall of their government.
“The period when the Greek nations had reached the peak of a democratic state was when the `academy` and the `arena` were being managed and directed by the senate in a detached manner that was isolated from both these sorts of establishments” (Joseph 13). The “academy” in this statement was the college of philosophy in Athens built up of a corporate body and an elected headmaster (Encyclopedia Britannica). An un-unified nation overall, lead to the collapse of this government. The Athenian and Spartan rivalry eventually lead to Sparta creating an alliance with the Persians who previously tried overthrowing Greece. Sparta then waged a civil war on Athens resulting in “Athens finally surrendering in 404 BCE, its days as a military power ended” (Empire of Ancient Greece, Great Empires of the Past).
Our American democracy has a much developed from Ancient Greece. Just as the Athenians and Spartans had a quarrel, America had the civil war of 1861-1865, resulting in a different outcome. Instead of our beliefs remaining divided, the north and the south came to agreeable terms to end the war. Confederate General Edmund Kirby Smith, commander of Confederate forces signed the surrender terms offered by Union negotiators (America Civil War Ends, History Channel). As a unified nation we advanced towards the future of developing a strong America.
Unlike Greece, democracy in America includes every citizen who wishes to take part, both men and woman of every financial and other diverse class. The development of the 13th, 14th, 15th, and 19th, Amendments all have a part to giving everyone this right to vote democratically who is our President. The 13th Amendment ended slavery, “Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude…shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.” (www.loc.gov>research) The 14th Amendment then made everyone, regardless of their race, a citizen by saying, “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the States wherein they reside.” (14th Amendment, Article XIV, Section 1.) The 15th Amendment then elaborated on the 14th by detailing, “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.” (15th Amendment, Article XV, Section 1.) Then also the 19th Amendment gave women the right to vote, “The right of citizens to vote shall not denied or abridged by the United States on account of sex.” (19th Amendment, H.J. Res. 1. Article ---). Now that everyone is having a part in political leadership, this sounds promising to a great democratic future.
The election of 2000 between Gore and Bush had a surprising outcome to 543,895 votes for Gore over Bush. The ultimate decision came down to votes of the Electoral College; the Electoral College is similar to Greece’s meetings in the “Arenas”. Although, it is thought that electoral votes a separate entity of votes, instead it is a process of the voting system. So the Electoral College is a better developed “Arena” to decide who is president. This process involves our votes, actually it is electing votes for an elector who will be pledged to vote for the same party, such as republican or democrat candidates. “The candidate who wins the popular vote in a state wins all the pledged votes of the state's electors” (Usgovinfo.about.com).
However that fact, there were thorough investigation and debate of the results leading to a unanimous, unified, democratic decision of the elected president. The Democratic Party Platform of 2008 states, “Today, we pledge to renew American democracy by promoting the use of new technologies to make it easier for Americans to participate in their government. We will shine a light on government spending and Washington lobbying —so that every American is empowered to be a watchdog and a whistle blower” (Renewing America’s Promise, Preamble). Democracy in America is truly alive today, is it perfect, no. But unlike Ancient Greece, we have not reached our “peak” in development but we are still on the rise to a fair and powerful democratic society.

Work Cited:
-http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/popular+vote
-http://presidentelect.org/e2000.html
-Too Close Call Thirty Six Day Election by Jeffrey Toobin
-http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/greeks/greekdemocracy_01.shtml
-http://www.fec.gov/info/appfour.htm -James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay.
-http://www.free-ebooks.net/ebook/Why-Worry-About-the-Gradual-Loss-of-our-Liberties/html/13#ixzz1oCvAedTT
-Homo Sapience Joseph II by Joseph
-http://ezproxy.middlesexcc.edu:3268/HistoryDatabaseSearch.aspx
-Encyclopedia of the Ancient Greek World, Revised Edition

-RENEWING AMERICA'S PROMISE, Preamble, Democratic Party Platform, 2008
-Empire of Ancient Greece, Great Empires of the Past.
-Encyclopedia Britannica
-http://usgovinfo.about.com/od/thepoliticalsystem/a/electcollege.htm
-The Library of Congress >> Researchers >> Virtual Programs & Services

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