Cycle of Democracy

"A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the voters discover that they can vote themselves largesse from the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates promising the most benefits from the public treasury with the result that a democracy always collapses over loose fiscal policy, always followed by a dictatorship. The average age of the world’s greatest civilizations has been about 200 years. These nations have progressed through this sequence: From bondage to spiritual faith; From spiritual faith to great courage; From courage to liberty; From liberty to abundance; From abundance to selfishness; From selfishness to apathy; From apathy to dependence; From dependence back into bondage.”

Alexander Fraser Tytler (1747-­1813)

We are at 221 years now…and on to selfishness, with apathy and dependence already showing themselves.

After doing a little internet research it seems that there is no definitive answer as to who wrote this quote. It has been attributed to a number of people over the years and is likely several different quotes stuck together, see http://www.lorencollins.net/tytler.html for a good essay on the quote.

The fact that the origin of this quote is not known does not detract from the implied ideas behind it, which are fundamentally sound, if not slightly skewed. We are seeing the effect of the realization that people can vote themselves money by voting for someone who promises the most benefits from the treasury. Obama’s idea of the redistribution of wealth is nothing new, however the fact that 56-58% of the US population voted for him indicates that people are less willing to work for what they want/need and want it given to them.

As for the times given for the life of Democracies, it varies more than the 200 year mark, some have said that this is the time frame of the Athenian Democracy, but the Athenian Democracy was not a continuous period, rather it was interrupted on several occasions by the rise of tyrants, who often, initially, had popular backing. However this is a valid concern, democracies giving way to dictatorships, see the Wiemar Republic, and the rise of Napoleon III.

It is easy to see that we are working our way through the cycle, and that if we are not careful we will go on to become a nation bound up by our government, and dependent on them for the littlest things.

These so called "stimulus" packages are a perfect example of this idea. People voted in the last run of elections for a party that basically promised to give them money. Isn't that bribery? The fact that many Americans are so short sited as to allow themselves to be driven only by their needs and not the greater needs of the nation. People and companies need to understand that when they mess up it's their own fault, and the government is not required to bail them out, you hear that GM, Chrysler? If a company is practicing business which causes it to lose money is there really a reason for supporting it? Is there any reason to believe that they won't blow that money away? The first time I ever really disagreed with President George W. Bush was when he signed the first economic stimulus package into effect.

I fear that we are slowly becoming a nation addicted to government support, a nation of socialists.

However let us not forget that:

“It has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried.”

Sir Winston Churchill

So I guess I don’t really have any answers but I have seen the symptoms, and they frighten me.