S3E7 Political Democracy

The pilot flying your plane is not chosen by a vote from the passengers. So why should the leader of a country be chosen by everyone living in it?

Would you rather have a small number of well-informed votes or a large number of uninformed ones? Is quality more important than quantity?

I believe democracy is the best form of government, but sometimes we misunderstand what it means. Anyone is free to become a pilot or a brain surgeon, but no one is allowed to work as one without the proper education, training, and license. The same principle, some argue, should apply to voting.

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:04

Welcome to Life Workshop, where we discuss the forgotten basics. Today's topic is democracy. And I have with me this young lady, Keller. This is not her real name. And as you can see, her video is off because this episode is in incognito. But anyway, so this subject was picked by Keller. So I would like to ask you, first of all, Keller, do you want to say hi?

SPEAKER_00 0:28

Hello.

SPEAKER_01 0:30

Hi. And then the second thing, so what is democracy?

SPEAKER_00 0:37

Okay, so democracy comes from the Greek um words meaning rule of people. So it's demos kratos. So demos means the people, and kratos means power or rule. Um, so that's just kind of like the backstory on that, I guess. And then so it kind of operates on three core principles. There's citizens' participation, which is like voting, um, equality and freedom, so freedom of speech and religion, and then there's also accountable accountability, holding the people accountable, and then also the leaders accountable. And there's also two main types. So there's direct um democracy, which is everyone gets a say in like every law, every rule kind of thing. Um, and then the more common one, which is representative democracy. So people elect representatives to make decisions for them.

SPEAKER_01 1:30

I see. So is it I suppose then it's supposed to be good? No, democracy is better than other types of governments.

SPEAKER_00 1:42

It's supposed to be. I guess it depends who you ask.

SPEAKER_01 1:46

And now, uh of course, democracy has changed over time too. We shall discuss that. But the example, the democracy that you have in Canada versus United States, or let's say Sweden, is a little bit different. And each one of them has been, you know, is considered to be democratic. But yeah, you're right. You know, the democracy is normally, to the best of my knowledge, is when people they get the right to vote, or themselves directly, or they've selected elected people, I should say, that they they get to say. But when it comes to democracy, there is one democracy, the political part of it, and one is the social. For example, the way that I understand it, in America, the government is more democratic. But when it comes to social democracy, it's not as much. For example, people they have to spend their own money for their own health care. Sometimes they have to buy their own guns for defending themselves. I'm kidding, that's not needed, but you know, they are going too far in that as far as I'm concerned. But for example, in Sweden, it's a different thing, they have higher taxation and it's more of a socialist country, and basically, you know, uh government supports a lot of things, but by taxing the rich and giving it to less, you know, the lower income people. But the interesting uh part is that in a country like in Iran, they consider the kind of democracy as well, but it's a religious democracy, and they think even that is a better version of democracy because they consider God's um priorities. I don't know. And you know, so uh democracy is, you know, a lot of people they give it a good connotation and it's practice. Of course, I'm not gonna say how I'm thinking about it till the end. But um at times, you know, the problems with democracy, you correct me if I'm wrong, because democracy normally, the government changes every so many years, every four years, five years or so. And then because of that, the governors normally are focused only for the next few years, they don't care as much on the long term. So that is one flaw about the democracy. The second thing is that things really move very slow. It's because they have to get the agreement of Alaska people, so that is another flaw with the democracy. Um, but when it comes to voting, don't take me wrong, I should say this. I moved from Iran to Canada. Trust me, I did not come here because of the weather. If people they move to China, Saskatchewan, right now, weather is awesome, but only for two months. After that is awful.

SPEAKER_00 4:31

I don't know if you would consider it awesome right now. We just had hail an hour ago.

SPEAKER_01 4:37

Well, it is the best we get, yeah. But believe it or not, I'm coming from Shiraz in Iran, and the weather was awesome. Honestly, it was like California. So normally I tell people I did not move to Canada because of the weather. That is for sure. The reason I came actually is because of the democracy, actually, believe it or not, more than anything else. More than anything else. So, democracy personally, I'm a pro-democracy, but I believe in some parts democracy, you know, has changed, and probably there are some philosophy. So bear with me, we will get that. So I'm gonna ask you this question, Kele. If you have a five-year-old, would you let her or him to go operate the oven and make food for themselves?

SPEAKER_00 5:30

Uh, not without supervision, probably.

SPEAKER_01 5:33

So, are you a dictator or a protector?

SPEAKER_00 5:38

I'm a protector.

SPEAKER_01 5:40

Um, what about then they turn, let's say, 15-year-old? Would you let them to go use the oven and cook for themselves? And I'm assuming the reason you do that is when they have proven that they can handle that without harming themselves, yeah, or burning the place down. My question is that what makes you think a five-year-old when turns 50 will be eligible for voting to choose who runs a country. Normally, for example, when we want to go to, I'm gonna take it to a bit of an extreme to make my point clear. When we want to fly, we don't vote on who is gonna be the pilot. It's not a memorandum, it's not a publicity. I may hate the pilot, but as long as he has a license to fly the plane, go at it. Yeah, then how come that we allow people and anybody and everybody to vote when, and because the leader is like a pilot for the country to lead a country when they don't know how to vote, when they don't know the licensing, you know, the you know, the guy who's going to become the leader, you know, they should go through a process and really should not be based on the individuals, you know, it's not a popularity test.

SPEAKER_00 7:19

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 7:21

So that is the problem that I have with this with the voting. Actually, Plato, um, he's obviously famous uh philosopher, he says that he doesn't agree with um democracy democracy because normally the people who win are the ones that are more popular. I'm assuming he has been watching my podcast. That is very good.

SPEAKER_00 7:43

Must have been.

SPEAKER_01 7:48

And actually, I should tell you this. It was almost a year ago we had an election in here. And then a buddy of mine, you know, we were talking over the phone, and then he said, Yeah, I have to go. I said, Where are you going? He said, He's going to vote. And then he said, That did you vote? I said, No, I'm not gonna vote. He said, Why not? I said, You should do that. You know, I thought you were a good citizen, and thing. I said, That is exactly why I am a good citizen. That is why I'm not voting, because I don't know the candidates. I don't know, you know, even the exact job that they should do. I don't know that. That's why I'm not voting. Then he said, All right, and he said that he is going to vote. I said, so who are you going to vote for? He said, I don't know. I said, seriously. So you're going in half hour to vote for somebody that you don't know. And he himself for a moment thought that, huh? You know, yeah, I haven't done my homework. I said, you cannot do your homework within half hour. And that's the problem. So this is one of the flaws I believe that be happened. I normally say that for voting, people should have a license to vote. And then the question becomes I said the same way that you want to do in democracy, you can become a brain surgeon, you can become a pilot, you can become a mechanic, you can become anybody. But you should go study, tour the licensing. When you get the license, you can do that. But how come when it comes to voting to choose a leader who's the pilot for the country? Anyone can, you know, can choose. That is my problem. That I'm saying there is something wrong with the process of voting, and that is why. Actually, probably you have heard sometimes they say a few days before the election, the situation is very fluid. When they say they're fluid, it means that they don't know what the hell they want to do. They have not made up their mind. Seriously, that is exactly what it means. Because most of the people, you know, they know some people they are the right and some are left, and they don't change their mind. You know, I'm a right wing or we're left wing at any, you know, for doesn't matter what happens. But some are there that they can swing. You can sway this way or that way, it depends that you persuade me. Yeah, and they don't have, and that is silly. That is absolutely it is one of the exact you know proofs that people they don't know what the hell they are doing, yeah, and that is why the situation becomes fluid. If somebody knows their value system, way in advance, they know what they are gonna do, and they will not be persuaded that easy, but anyway, so that is my um my concern with this thing. Um on the other hand, I should say one thing that um of course you are talking about the political uh democracy, we will be talking about the social democracy in another episode, yes, but uh political democracy, it's again at the end is good because remember, again, because of the same political democracy, right now we can sit here and actually express ourselves. So that is the good part of it, though. And normally I say um democracy is one of the best ways. I agree with that. I say it's like a pressure cooker, when the pressure builds up, then there is a safety hole that you know the molecules they have no brain, but when there is freedom, they move freely, and then wherever that there is a hole, there you know there is that becomes the escape gate for them. Yeah, but if it was not democracy, it would be like a rock that when the pressure builds up, nothing moves till it's crashes. That was my metaphor. Did it work?

SPEAKER_00 12:06

Yeah, I like that. I like the analogy.

SPEAKER_01 12:09

Yeah, it is it's just like as I know that the pressure could even the molecules they have no brain, but you know, they will find a way to run away, to run out. But if it is solid, there is they they won't, they won't, they will just crush. Yeah, so the safety is not there. So for that reason, again, I believe in democracy, democracy is one of the best things. And one more thing that I would like to add before we basically end the podcast is I would say uh the whole world actually is getting getting to that way, regardless of the countries that they have been more dictatorship or in the under any other circumstances, thanks to the internet and globalization of the whole thing, the whole world is changing. Of course, some they start from more of a dictator and more you know child base that they are getting to become more democratic, and some like us that we are in a democratic place, but sometimes this democracy has become a bit of a chaos, it's not democracy, and then and then in this part we have to do something about it. But again, thanks to democracy, we will be able to speak and find our problems. And one more nice thing, China, on the other hand, although it's considered not to be a democratic country, is a communist. When we look at it, over the past 30 years, they have been able to bring 800 million people out of poverty and flourish amazingly that nobody ever in the history of humanity, to best of my knowledge, has done as they did. And I think one is one reason is because they are not democratic, but they have been lucky that they have had the right government. I know some people may not agree with me, but if you look at the outcome, you know, they have done it, they have done amazing. And what it but the problem with it is when the government changes, what will happen? Will it be as good? That is the problem when you're a little bit more rigid. It depends strictly on the few people or the few hundred, you know, that they are on top. And then if this goes and then the new one comes, are they going to perform as well? It becomes a lot more depending on that. But in democracy, of course, unfortunately, the way that it has been right now, again, it becomes, for example, in the United States, you see we have Obama, a normal, very intelligent, as far as I'm concerned, human being, for the most part, for the most part. Yeah, and then goes to Trump, and then from one to the other, one extreme to the other. And I know some people may not agree with either of them, but that's okay. But one government goes, the other one comes and does the exact opposite for a lot of things. That is one problem again with the democracy. But again, these are the things that I believe in democracy to change and make it better, it will happen faster than potentially in a dictatorship or anything close to that. Because in those situations, it's purely depending on the government that you know, if the rulers are good, then you're very good. Dubai, another example, the rulers are doing a fantastic job. What they have done out of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. But if the next generation comes and they're not as good, I don't know what will happen. So, and this if they can establish something that works the same way, as good as they have done it. But, anyways, so this was the political part of it. We will end it here, but we will do another podcast on the social democracy. Uh, again, as always, I would like to end it as with this thing that life is simple, we make it complicated. Thank you.