Archive for the ‘Democracy’ Category

What price democracy amid Venezuela’s political turmoil? – The Guardian

Venezuelas president Maduro delivers his weekly broadcast in Caracas Photograph: Reuters

Ken Livingstone (Letters, 5 August) is spreading misinformation about Venezuela a country I came to love and then mourn in my years living there. Iam the proud husband of a Venezuelan and have watched my extended family suffer hardship and worse as the country has been plunged into turmoil by Maduros inept and corrupt regime. It isimportant to note that Maduros government is partly enabled by support from ignorant overseas voices.

Livingstone appears to dismiss the accurate observations that opposition leaders had been arrested by the Maduro government as propaganda. Onthe contrary, the arrests of Leopoldo Lpez and Antonio Ledezma and now the dismissal of Luisa Ortega from the national assembly, are verifiable facts that demonstrate all too clearly the intention of the Maduro regime to admit no criticism or opposition at all. The government of Venezuela is far from the benign force for social good that Livingstone bizarrely insists it is. We are witnessing a cynical power grab by a corrupt and ruthless cartel. To call it otherwise is to betray democracy and justice. Dr Richard Harrold Leiden, Netherlands

While Venezuelas rightwing opposition boycotts elections and calls for a military coup or foreign invasion, we are to understand that they are in fact champions of democracy (Tensions mount as Maduro ignores critics, 5August).

Whatever the undoubted problems with Nicols Maduro, your photo showing newly elected constituent assembly members from indigenous and other minority groups is likely to disturb the US and its allies, who believe such people do not belong in legislative palaces, and that billionaires rather than bus drivers should lead countries. Peter McKenna Liverpool

Good to see that champion of democracy, the Vatican, calling for a suspension of the newly elected assembly in Venezuela. As you report, it joins a group of United Nations experts who stated: The government of Venezuela must stop systematically detaining protesters and end the growing use of military tribunals to try civilians.

Has anybody mentioned this to Donald Trump? Perhaps he might show the same respect for the human rights ofthose detained in Guantnamo Bay. Declan ONeill Oldham

The Tories and their media allies have been very interested in what Jeremy Corbyn has to say about Venezuela recently. WillTheresa May be pressed with equal vigour to condemn the attempted military coup against President Maduro? Sasha Simic London There are two sides to all issues concerning government and society, a debate that forms the basis of politics. Developments in Venezuela show that the country is divided, but it still has an elected government and an electoral system. The protests do not mean that the Maduro government is without substantial support in Venezuela. I believe there is also such support in the UK especially among trade unionists, academics in Latin American studies and others. The Guardians backing for the anti-government side in recent weeks in various articles, editorials, cartoons and commentary has a four legs good, two legs bad tone.

Nothing could be more dangerous than the Venezuelan government being forced out by US-led action, already mooted in some quarters. Its much too soon for the destruction of another politically vulnerable, oil-rich state by such means. Dr Kevin Bannon London

The problem with Oscar Guardiola-Riveras piece on Venezuela (The problem for Venezuelans: Maduros opposition would provide no relief, theguardian.com, 3 August) is that it is makes unsubstantiated claims. For example, he says that the rightwing opposition cant rally a majority beyond the middle-upper classes. He seems to ignore that the opposition won the parliamentary elections of 2015 by a major landslide.

Here are the facts: the national electoral commission controlled by the regime convenes in weeks a poll to establish a national assembly while refusing to call regional and local elections, though it was constitutionally mandated back in 2016.

Maduro then suddenly calls this poll to change the 1999 constitution which Chvez himself called the best in the world. His real intention is to dissolve a congress that was democratically elected by the people. The fact remains that the regime faces an economic crisis of its own making. Yes, Maduro inherited the institutional and financial mess from his predecessor, but he also lacks the charisma and capacity to overcome it.

His own ideological stubbornness and a complex web of power, which includes links between the military, illegal mining and drug cartels, makes his own administration something of arollercoaster. Finally, I would remind Dr Guardiola-Rivera that Venezuela in 2017 is not the Chile of 1973 and that we would be doing Salvador Allendes memory a disfavour by continuing to make these unfair comparisons. Dr Jairo Lugo-Ocando University of Leeds

Prior to the French Revolution, the issue preoccupying compassionate European thinkers was how to end the barbarism of self-righteous survival of the holiest Christian cliques seizing an unfair share of the means to sustain life with impunity.

In 1784, Kant defined enlightenment as the adolescent stage in the existence of humankind, akin to the adolescent stage in the existence of every intelligent social animal, when immature ignorance of what sustains its existence is naturally succeeded by the mature understanding that its existence is sustained by the unconditional love of and for ones kind. Unlike Asa Cusack (What the left must learn from Maduros failures in Venezuela, 3 August), Marx and Engels had studied Kant, and recognised the significance of the self-taught compassionate solidarity developed by the new factory-based communities in Britain to mitigate their collective suffering without the advantage of a university education.

The current problems of humankind are the consequence of the systematic corruption of university-educated intellectuals by self-righteous survival of the richest mercenary cliques and corporations determined to continue seizing an unfair share of the means to sustain life with impunity. We are reaching the end of the age of enlightenment. It remains to be seen whether it will be marked by the triumph of compassion, or the premature extinction of the most intelligent species on earth. Steve Ballard London

Join the debate email guardian.letters@theguardian.com

Read more Guardian letters click here to visit gu.com/letters

Continue reading here:
What price democracy amid Venezuela's political turmoil? - The Guardian

Democracy? – Marion Mohri – Caledonian Record

Trump tweeted that the military will not accept or allow transgender people to serve in any capacity. His reasoning: transgender troops cost too much money and lower readiness.

A 2016 Rand Corporation study commissioned by the US military contradicts Trump. The study found that allowing transgender soldiers to serve in the US military would cost an additional $2.4 to $8.4 million annually and would not negatively impact readiness.

Contrasted with the $80 million the military pays annually for erectile dysfunction medication, money spent on transgender health care pales by comparison. Trumps argument is bogus.

As far as disruption in the military, the results of Rand study shows that Trump has no idea what hes talking about.

Trump said he consulted with my generals and military experts. Thats news to his generals who, along with the Sec of Defense, were totally blindsided by Trumps tweet.

The military was set to begin accepting transgender recruits beginning July 1, 2017. Sec of Defense Mattis delayed that by six months saying that the issue of providing health care and services for transgender recruits needed more study.

Whats really behind Trumps out-of-the blue tweet? Politico was told by numerous congressional and White House sources that Trumps sudden decision was, in part, a last-ditch attempt to save a House proposal full of his campaign promises that was on the verge of defeat.

House Republicans were planning to pass a spending bill stacked with Trumps campaign promises, including money to build his border wall with Mexico. Then Rep. Vicky Hartzler, R-Mo. introduced an amendment that would forbid money being spent by the military health care system for medical treatment related to gender transition.

She portrayed her proposal as a good government plan aimed at assuring military dollars are spent only on critical national defense needs. She did not explain how $80+ million per year spent on erectile dysfunction medications are critical national defense needs! House Democrats and 24 GOP members defeated her amendment.

She and other Anti-LGBT GOP members turned to Trump. They told Trump the budget bill would not pass unless it included language forbidding the military to perform transgender surgeries. Horrified that the budget bill might not pass, in the flash of a tweet, Trump announced that transgender troops would be banned altogether. Problem solved.

A majority of Americans believe that transgender Americans should be allowed to serve their country. Anyone willing to sacrifice his/her life for their country makes a sacrifice that Trump with his five draft deferments refused to do.

This is NOT how a Democracy is supposed to work! You know, the one that says, of the people, by the people, for the people.

Follow this link:
Democracy? - Marion Mohri - Caledonian Record

One reporter’s experience of the collapse of democracy in Venezuela – Hot Air

Hannah Dreier is a reporter for the Associated Press who has been covering the situation in Venezuela since 2014. Today, Politico Magazine published an interview with her in which she describes how she started out thinking the stories of Venezuelas decline were exaggerated but gradually came to realize the country was falling apart:

I spent my first year there really trying to argue that it wasnt collapsing, because there was already this narrative that it was a dictatorship where people were starving. And thats not what I initially saw. Maduro had just won an election. It was a very polarized place, but half of the country supported him. And, people were on diets. There was a super-abundance of food

And, I think it wasnt until the people in my life started to lose weight that I really realized that things had changed. And then, people that I knew started to be robbed regularly.

Dreier experienced this change herself when she was robbed on the street in broad daylight and later when she was kidnapped by the secret police:

I mean, there was just no way to insulate yourself from the crisis when you were there. And the thing you really cant insulate yourself from is violence. So, I was robbed in broad daylight a couple of blocks from where I lived by two men on a motorcycle, and I kind of saw them coming and thought they might rob me, because that was happening to a lot of people at the time, and then they did. And when I told my friends about it, they were, like, Oh, that was a good robbery. Nobody got hurt. That was good and simple. And so your standards just start to change

The same thing happened when the secret police grabbed me one day. I was in detention for a few hours and they made all these threatslike, they said they were going to slit my throat; they said they were going to keep me for weeks and weeks; they said I had to stay there until I married one of themand when I got out, I told my friends, and they thought it was super funny. So, I also started joking about it, and we got drinks, and it was just like another thing that happened.

Dreier makes clear that while many people still love deceased President Hugo Chavez, almost no one loves President Maduro. Maduros rule has been characterized by sheer incompetence:

This is the most irresponsible thing Ive ever seenthere was a day last year where the government invalidated that bank note, the hundred bolivar, which is all people were using at that point. There was no sense using anything lower than that because it was like a fraction of a fraction of a penny, so people were only using hundred bolivar notes, and we all had hoarded supplies.

And the government said, You know what? Today you cant use that anymore. It has no value. And they didnt issue a new note. So there were three days where you couldnt pay for anything, and that day I needed to take a taxi, but I couldnt. I needed to recharge my phone; I needed to put some more minutes on itI couldnt. Nobody could go out to eat. And there were riots. There was a riot in one city that destroyed more than a hundred stores, because people couldnt buy anything, and so they just went out and started taking things.

And finally, after three days the government sent the military out to pacify the country, and said, OK, fine. You can use your hundred bolivar notes again. But, I mean, the whole country just ground to a halt for no reason.

As for what comes next, Dreier is not very optimistic about the countrys future. She tells Politico, my experience down there has, if its taught me one thing, its taught me things can always get worse, and worse, and worse. She adds, theres no rule that says that a miserable situation has to end, just because its too miserable. The clampdown on opposition figures that has happened in the past week seems to prove Dreier is right about that. In Venezuela, things just keep getting worse.

The rest is here:
One reporter's experience of the collapse of democracy in Venezuela - Hot Air

Are we living in a true democracy? A Socratic dialogue between an American and a citizen of Athens – New York Daily News

K[dn/bRv6Wc%(ioO'mosYQQHwwxVcfe.]NGN#S~Z )2 a#mg[O9uMo^2=#HWZ;((G(F~d4S#}$YzPJk.Do&+);XuEz7kf1b6+*Ii4T78:T sQ(sLSE fjW*:iw$E^&rms4H5rt:xc_( PM.AwBswx={L`xRb,:xMBa.]`Jf?b9`7m rCMdB*=oke`(WyMd&F/Z8fn9y+Oi,clOk55nT15CLI/PJ:cy//y&Q#>{,`zCGc++bwcQ|6;R%R=nn~0PsLK@p8|n,7/tawN@Crg31p0:_Nz(ljV:T&>PRZxc, %E3osRE/k> :&?dKQKON1=xZkrE%'JPI,F(8G6g)F}1Mv,Py?|;+{A@m"]7w-U8G8C`A?Uv>@=|>gr*#F)ok_{ulqJYT>...#D',l[+unX?j ix~,ddVC~_n8~ayz;kvvmor~y/$&nG=CW/lw1nl.7"Hx+7_?|o6pep7?[TYGr[}_NkJcrY0O D(Bb`s) gDD&3jv .f'=]n%b@pcc*H0Cb(o[jvw:yWo>4N6|6F=Z I5$Wr=o].# +")lN[uOCE!|9AE[P`dC)8Q6:2;xirjz?Fu#wUlYh *~lQ(H(V 11 qQX|6{iCx>(1nck&|O>l ~!t"Z$ 1xxaMF_ex*#;1sgwry%h6|MaG3`@SY_l#b6vmaFnUE-b:.V%Ul*6`plKl( %$LNcRNzKS}CS`!`j5KO5f.$OMe#bQ2UcU511k^z sp?6]E+oD"h*w, /F#4iAZ!H7!,R;40St2(BM&O`Tqp(F-Tj_Ih{Gq_yd{o LB5!8=g)J0kfJz3m1cyA[d'-9;S;iM46g[4C'42KkfoS#:m+a}iwKsmCV{YK32s~p0kCh8F-Sql&Y"N&LLYh?UmN2 fJ_uQ? 7+?S"'0y 7uSd2S({:EN z} -OF!oF&dP'=zmC}/D2qRl):~k,!h9k,uDL!gbwy%T;'Gy$&mdlQ42 ]L2Qh}>Z!3222tU6muRTK-3|jdL#UpR%j005m^8P"7"](u$dL#RJZ-J"vc,0=T;b{!:rTQy;> $z{F>J*Vo[}WR-.N9rdls~ ti-"v2f>{cz QQ^q8'uQ;`2urg[xCw7Q3g/mFKF6qr;yK^1?b/_^m3:~^Dm)JJM+wQ)0rUh1xW?~M&]KVl8?^s+-:2C|`p2WqV0HiZ63[,nSwzGWa|D`>~bt%u

Xkx:8epkZ]0v[}>c`R Rr_M/ M:6s17Gi H=AC ytnTnDO121+|Qh_=*zyO}4xm;:':rR6s$}k!OIdS;,8z&CxnBL-*f]'Tc;gGmzv3yG%;Q_2(.tEM~b`I^B=2{Ssh+?v,~}iE9OL(4= iRw>yO[2}z=^I4_X[s~?U~8S[@6090 /S-%[%0uVOtY^x{[}XvKM-8u|m }4!0v5lMd}L[ZBO'n=8"'jo`E5O`"{QCMfWS>|vc>HqGXJb }N ,mCn)gn4 ZUa"pBs!M4|$ &.>5B[p gP^x++_~Be; QM]|bh#abaQ!$([T2h *Sb1O4'.gxB_v]Q>[|>`IZ%!G#*FUmCYie%q} GA@boQy{{p2ctir8L7.n=@ZjC4`gkR,|F]jW.e".#f=xL4ydhvf[?&jt[2 !3:OON4uZ ;GuZadyK?> j`{3U -]`hN8yS+sbDd3.rvQ'`@!}?&U)$ vD qyi$(EvC@N2*c/d!sIR8;V/EJ{PC5)Cx|~A]@XXl UQp_X2($PyD1q'e&`hy{Qe }C{r_R-*kt"I[HhS9vX6A`-1D8R] +fH-+mQD[sbL$?hpSdBS(6^)%^yn,I J7S!/Wm#jzDGK}8wYao~pQMv; d11Zpti?6s]A`{ZIi'4#pqb+kCr!#x:,:[+usI_E,-|yH]RAb}*_`M S1uJARc8d3{v&wryL0 v%?lWLQYMs6g&f'I-yl%!Q-~F }0d-9|{tTen{X;OEHVr:NXx0k{"r>b/z-gC;A r|T80:"N`ECp.pcN") Yi`:KD:{}>pTL%0mo}||qS(;nJD`o-sSW3/T}I~h'N47L%$g:# `%}YgH ZL&/wlt=?X AI5;+LCX=:weoWWD:YgZ`t9mi {/Z/m|g*/CN HO)%h[8eYWLZkNZ5yUFe}ZmBsy0m6]_^$cl'vr,y ymE7%r'SQ/ Yq?91g?6Nc==,cX[pa+:vZBiR3W{^X3FW*cqY{+FIK[+)xgf6V,0zf7V|g#L'Y*^x.`a f3lRc!6,-fVzj^m%"P2#M9KT=yhx%$(jRZdI V55,/O% %bFj+=`Q2Jcin+iX2RHkpJ:=pzj;Hx ]Ryyi$jM"UNdg7iho}yo{6}c+6_l{i Nn.^(|)i!@Sg~uF| @ya6_Q ][Mhpf[tMCn{ZAlDee4gRPRPp?jBr|dM%B ;k)UWc~f Fflk}o~~wi.ei{ea6C S Lc6'QizO*n3yi,ciwZn}rc* mTfx4dJ.E _7Wv?,Z[R [~lbnY}{n3^8qvwmN?T7lU|IN

k$FOr]l;QiON5ydho]z tZQ{WlJ^S)L"^v_^%FnmiYio2P6qkZBLO P8#zG$YBT:*lY{VMB^8t+;rQxcNubre I)V!*w/;z;*IJ e#s6j/Ggdb~:zml6Mxx-OI). 44f/xd` JeoG0j2rV`[ >H}~'4c3Usl3!s2od889fI2!"PR(ZD,f9 w; z/rij.7*,xM.rnjauU&WI]6ZyY&]r*+axJTYAl/1X/Z_2einkc77!-(xA;JO C=*uEq.",@6AtnD'>wSz2?*i*(T (x1*a]Byo=ZI3YHA3Dxn(S(ytbrSZb:r]pc{dFvA]"b'2k#IHH:QurKtaXot_KFC+0~ f5Y ^j.R]YA{dC&d@=eE@^W}_ 6? -=mz;~X%PegPkUf 24B$,usDt%eJTE'|XZI`1{ykRRz>T"LJKhi>X)(c`b%_N?T$8v`*)Xf&[C T:J]BR+&_JMP* E763^g`]$F1+ IDC }>IPo6m DwC!nl_}c3n]t}Of2~gcLW]X~S}?oWkj=0|P^Yc]u4k! [> |mMjXCl&68[Ywdue6n2K~}}291:N$^uVKr{W:d?md .L _9~!)}&.]rC6[K9&x^ Wj4D*5MGO_>y|'O|n-GO;k-uim# r:0%{ dOO_^CT^J"WPg/>6_/t9OFA>9"j}jn_5U{R SLwQLL)tHH)ZVTf}/gx';&6c CWT?n?`'3&Q8M)jk;0+p`OV1Qy7vR 0wHlt13=A> y*tLf5$h,86XcrQ@_k7%BbF(4u%mS0aTrn LG7 H/gnnrz&Q(2|dwQ(41.'-}'PBQnV'pAfHKG! h9@Icq;X"C'gc>1;2V{@OI0 o"upAX"Bo[UMtsQUV[`sPe}xgw Q)_t?loB>3u9G FVj #T%"m2d'Y&CCD2tAB,MPi^V 7n'O%)$-WywFCzqi[Ra,+6N:e^&? 7ZBk&R|,~iE 6)Q hG^=g8coR`xDYQS"U3)isgK+UV!D,)J%NO [tJW6X35D+ n~9/_7JrDu{{~1O+ jxCbrW)K2m+[02NxgR#-OKopQ?leVep68fJDeXWe%jgFF=+;JK[ eVj[/>/W(`P d

r3Q[Z(6Ao9?.e[3KR&5 @ P@E4@E|k`KH#! &&2bK$r DhYE:ah)^yd -jbLY8UY((#m3|~u(mE ~|SNE-EPI;4Ip`{Di#'82K+}z= 0G-KGbH8G:`kJynpsPl}fQ"RN;oC88Ep%V.X2DuX?+WnWX_c4{]H+J5f'5DXoH3Li]*#%'z+@6?BZ]34+DlP3_{A$qo6.2=}.z_44=?Yms64w3I97rm2L>x S{%Zn2sovg*lU$ln26H/_rIFvr^H,U+`(%RG6L~bRY.Lr/m5W$3 uQ_[h[ig%EqOvvC?U"idr4*5hX2 Si-wga^;{e0^X9 '[NiT3 .b)A0b3Sb,D!L[#vw EuNgC, ?b.$" $&&"3owX@ivH,j_ST"R&n[u>qAW: kk~> WD)x?Xp3rV+rSjPRe* (EdmTaoAk~H%%36'qN.rjAMCr~ywR;n?>jWP+f!Tx|?M%xf8OAdiw7Js[>"{aD3eR7hW8Be e%.R '@l-B9>0udfp'fyH;B*F_P#OJ*({Fg^xsq]:Z}uF'g68'd1t6v P&p #)b Qep{'Yf2KwJ NUvs>G!j@VY.tDys4PS3)V(M~gp[Y^S; 77/ mk46p]zC*m')s3vhq.0V#R:2yC9,Q*]0BG7ma(}B5w5&36]G: [z~0"@VgxK4k[UA1Y'G1v)J+ XA `i[$Uzs' N&7{m]J-s0Wew)2KBcs?:%(w*eNCc.8 RP/`k{r5?rEa$@.zv>j=e myj2| TV0O0hcu[Mvf) L(|gMgEe,tOQ *y/6qR XXrWORdlLX*?X,#$i$92S.eM&M*m_~R?MTeeMEQmPI}~l#{{w_&U5lc1om~Dq8}?Gz#=G^__??OlTL ";U2ZmAI|zV~xf~iRL29Yy|,mqdFio0b;KRH2 #eJX.F&(63Hv6j|Vo]`3StK" 9Vxrl ,}>qi^X{^wObF*hW,sU vl7 _h+Vh T&("&OsNvCC-(I:2G;]^|"a>MiO:_1iZ{MxF&.m2V.yStzk'1rTVYRGyHz> d =cq|Kf)LLM%e)mEo2Kd&'OMh'xdcVl48GN{m1bwMmgjW }h'V:9v({ca>ojgf}SzzR=v6vnk' 3PEw9qF!.2>pCR5~>[xzFF5n6gN3wSsm.Tc|n= U,;cJsUs>0X$j 8N]qQ sP{%B.g82q >gu4=GN1y}gm()8MR+`83(o9H#t;mJ~d}qV ,qc/-bQu]=K$E~^xo{f>xp.xu]4/z)XpI5R};7To@XH Svn{j4Sup8ed02i9I+;yy2/PKrO8KOE?ES 3#A=D2.z2CMs=6T1'Z{=lO;] M5K :(C{n )mk3xvlCY:U.:N~}Mj2ht ]Cln? dknin@'aUWsn3tgwQ>bhb&. TZ{-Ol7 gF%{ bzmIHd2RDrsA!xIZ,{ O%lxTO:[O~t$c 8 6T ]zM5hdRIdCp|f,.vK{ {l:%YmoZ}O#wJ5 bi!9y_ar":S?]=[onl0{i_OF/&Q]-qbU2S8 . +|NrLjc: {kTx,iGV6: s;1P%;"79-W =

?oYq>Ssez:=8M&zoUBql>;5qYEPm l&VDUO6Yu=?k0[{'J"ub kI;3qNglW9r s`Hz{btz2E1R)^nc#M-DyMCpizMcp =ZhU?DH}FrV!7b'q/Gh4uF]]c.,(O_>jSE.O(zynC(Os~v*uQ;HP4_q~@b3w,'Lv~oNR'Jzg7EyJ;vwcrg#ew{no`~'Kr 5bu3~&7b+j5#G'2|F}nyzb(!e> p_d7}}}qAq>B3q!~7!'~7%*]HDjEc>fXe%08_N]UsHPuQlsE9%bo}K!XYb#]xN5PiM8k)]nVkN`k 5yMl){_{Lru6~w5{X{X;c3&G7q OOOOOO#s=Oc7WT:i3W|G'TNgc=zh#w)ZGKKyL9VPf}=q[#,yp,oWAS^n>hiBpA7IT:}TXhs0bg54C(@!Pw2cl $,VT_U+O:qUzN"c?>v9C%rK{W?~Y|b:yH8-b"1i9mX6-(x _=VP+ .$ kf9.:"}cv t_c+'nXg&p1#Yt6l4[?zn)BM#ofrQ`LUi`gCx%inkot8kW :@"8b6@csE:kagVz=eq$'fw=`80sgZ(jrSE/,}|_6 s7O|N>WU>-oNY[wJA MDR" 2g9y,;HU}}r2:F|[bfC:JW9+J.yD1eZA@g="/mz}$[*|]ECi8Qn2E>g5 0hVHK['i5qYm)M4=M"y2AK9rU#_+Li5rdKkLS,~KjD]5 '5=ttqNh86sMR?[A HU~L6C[CsHMV#:_']#>U}J_vy=r:,r:'j@%&N,I.QXuQ(_:.nAn%zGuQ[=wO3ZQ3j6MXue.Jsn{*~ouL+pEng~qldbr/9lFmsCx1rivD,0rmVf{ M~o|d~dnp zR]LBP>gf?53g#g*3k6d-vcDMb}C7k.56kyuDWG11xAS%v<>k7uq?:['Gq/~z!g/]*iqf*4o=q+,!kuxFCijoQGX[.FgT`|lLi{? -zV'/q>K12`RE[e^@'u+kh10)!kRFBEw`BqQ7Js*H| D/o:Q _5L}I =?2~OtBW},vCR-x]JiY8#?bXprGeNiG? MX>tK:`^2Tx6shx>A?Q4?_mxmA~#5J&i0@;l9=/5hNh;{nf -*"~b/Gtm{{o[wG|#~ m`/a^CAq9u#X]d?"rFT`[ uQ5{:l u%=u+k.-A- 9CLiUc,w?trc# f-7x})dn<]_CrJ-S"hbT}.. ]_tEM%[>Z2;>{AI$%aa7Ky89 Vb6hge.eX:8yI8yxG&|Ycg~ky}jO@l>fK?n,!G{$G }5=r#9CCK2fX-o=s/wnST`wnYvJC" _f%dzt1RTZ X;/9j3QTK}oZE^LXj,>#iF,^i9L@4KKjjNF 3*M8y"%(%?}?'y g(I )p]6V-C`;t"^2(p&Dq;2{qNGKNI{7.^XuI4!0~8GOGvc}`]N86L6[Tn~m(g"vW^3?,c6+}kcEq5']TF{[20MU[*PUli_>rE_ MX_|Yy_lc4AA3vay0jRi =bT]48Jg"k/== :e1Ne}<R!c W"r~=,DbylnQx]wdF^gZ"TZV;A< __4}[Oi[k73TdE]GXu2 9 )FX[ig7;px_p#>L2> w5T)EH1uiceeJ726) QS Cq.;+DDDsrCn|ib-=xWnWX_j(++cl8:u^9Rbd[xv7LbfyCc9kdc%g1 @c{NlxEGbb$-c6+lC>.qOr=kkZ'Mw[*Zbg`pN5bgV>'?TnyC[u>t-+__[3^87dBTvsHuV]I~A]k]T-WP_-nS1,V^TSxo&PKs4L%ovrGy/?^qhV7I> E[ #9w%xmWXcy{%^<2:Y/QgiHK%laZ}+p1wPf7mN%>` 9t.xO{I=k"$RvY]5dP;L)9 Bvms-Gk@&t^P@C; !8-n-&k+<;:rb4l(LaS{usbs?S8~gCrAO5+Qph2P:hWgA+}#rA ~f[hx%f,IvIsi=d8X |~X ]STYaH0K%FJ'x>A+Fzy f7oUD4UZyw3h8/~x {1C{cOKZaj33[Uf@Of)9j-5/9jk jI%^ 8OP;=hJNUJj;n#x:iZm:p3!gD^,Bv;R(/JJjN1|-`k3( 89z<[_O_tC-_R]E |iVs9b>#zmw,w]TlvY'to-ZBB|01/C /;wr:oWm#fa!Ns!?f@4og*{-o5O/_!y"Pw#pB>.g;~#_#{>-gFGGifIa~mP78/SUT)bG]h{cn$>Rz PO|n^3-uy`fl4 gSr.ggW*z]?, */+o(_tmMB4o^IVZsLFwwuY$Ry0-1@0z/;w@n{{W{~c #8*||~ovwbnn*s}qO8%VYL}ymIw.?bf){i AA:3"d'n |]|ATqxEa7s[e7xnDr,$p8E<{N3Jc3R8 Ipq%irY"%,IbKpB0bsf |m/W{i663{TEb{4`~c55[,q {#fj1o.#TA:={[+ZszwFe?}~"^IOO`3Yk<,!;ItX/{#tNpN_cbX#gm5@fboub"w/8!@#[HH^pnEM M =q+mV~|uCh;hF a 7|g~h*$ ca#H`ZoANb4nfsQW8${ =f"wqfmK.m}YcizC9;U~!S8eiW%6[,0_lLp@^65N-QNKGWI{8sI$W!,Z,lFh~{+Ur&L%<:h|<3GbN0&Sl4 YIte9Q*MF,g5ro0~{[,X2FcbS)8Z p+c6s8l)DOi %uY#ArV *k"1zIt`bq{U;g^|m}NHJvFS 6-pd%O3Vk0x?=){(W}u$exs:2 K 9U3&f73Kv^`|#:qqY a(m93)~> l@d|Xk3*>#f9js{GZOy$k h)Z_1({C%TZwh vh($LfWK W5x+7;Zu]Zn4cSb[7~S*m/ C COay1AAy:)n}ULSG=|Jd"NT}PWSQNn3Bw3~B$Cj1`5S5&Z#5Aze`@dg.#6q_}K`qrTZw6$(.&iqZ7!>uZNt#3Rn|Pfr}+}vm4>?*UZf:Zp*t$swQ1Z n~D1[=n^=:W9{w+Z'qnC^Z3t9vL3''iOYHr*22o0:%Ym/xx~hL>.;oFT#.>_r ^qe147-Z(]pW~TV)!F?@uM#8r9S4cV +e@S'_|pvZl`NB^(o(pv%IfGt|>ylG!sP;iEOd@*b|R{}Q>/.+ wQJs];WyC>ySt&t]W}6m8X*5|"85mEIvLp}Zs.,[c1L=`O@rQL`^n?y]Lrwl=P- A=3{D3*C?2:KAY B3)llR5c{J6)^d>0;{O"/iqyGbF;C q.lZ.GW6ZsF-#~5)j;Y^)ty ^iF]M6D.51#8YDpZyr_K1CWw0[1dlafE;t{!<21+TG!U9e!go:`lf v,fv>,zq^Zj 2)WSf8OtrM6u8SHBdZ7{g}Ua[7"m[We%y|s Msg/EF:i>@NsT!<??C_SYEQ`

Visit link:
Are we living in a true democracy? A Socratic dialogue between an American and a citizen of Athens - New York Daily News

Ignorance, Killer of Democracy – HuffPost

Much has been written about Donald Trump and his Presidency. Articles giving psychological assessments, or a list of ethical and impeachable violations, or how his character is lacking to lead properly or the pending Russian investigations. A lot of focus on Trump, who he is and how he and his Administration operate. Also, plenty of "shock and mock" over his statements via Twitter.

While it's important to document all of this and to persist with and protect the Mueller and other investigations, this country is in dire need of learning how to prevent this from happening again. In order to do that, we as a nation need to find out what is the root cause of the elected government we have at the moment. And how to prevent it from happening again. We can vote them out, but they might get voted back in, unless we as a society change. And it is up to the people who vote to understand what makes a candidate a danger to democracy and our Constitution. At this very moment,Trump supporter Kid Rock is trailing Debbie Stabenow for the Senate in Michigan by 8 percentage points. The crazy is out of control.

A while ago I wrote a blog called America's Embrace of Ignorance, which can be seen here. I outlined the continued actions of Congress to legislate based on beliefs and feelings over facts. The snowball wielding Senator Inhofe who tried to use the snowball to "prove" Climate Change isn't real, is one of many examples that my article pointed to as the ignorance being woven into our Government and the constituency.

I saw something THEN that was worrying, I knew one day we'd have someone who would completely "snowball" America into destruction because of this lack of truth, facts and reality. This boiling pot, if you will, of simmering ignorance just waiting to spill over. And two years later we got Donald Trump. It is the culmination of years of the republican party fostering bigotry, racism, sexism and slamming education and the press. Full stop.

Trump is not an anomaly, he is the republican party. Same beliefs, he just says it louder in raw slang --sometimes vulgar or incomprehensible (Covefefe) English--and on Twitter--but make no mistake it is the same message that the GOP has been selling for years.

And here we are, inside of that perfect storm that gave us the Trump Administration on the verge of our Democracy being destroyed and inside of a full Constitutional crisis looking for a reason why all of this is acceptable to some Americans.

Peak societal ignorance. That's why.

By education I don't mean Harvard, but a basic societal grasp on facts and reality. It doesn't help Americans when Congress continually cuts public education funds. Education is the answer to ignorance. Even the most basic knowledge of civic duty is lacking. If this weren't the case then maybe 62 million people who voted for Trump might have thought twice when he campaigned on legislating to ban people based on their religion, a direct violation of one the most important founding principles in our Constitution -Freedom of Religion.

The key is to not have a society that fosters and encourages beliefs over truth and facts--hint we are in one. This allows for dangerous ignorance to flourish. We have seen lie after lie in this administration, but very little fallout from lying. Trump voters want to believe. And that's what the polls show. So, no matter what Trump does his voters are sticking by him. It's their belief "he is the one" despite the facts and reality that show otherwise.Proof:

The above is a societal problem, a problem we need to admit to and defeat.

This failure to "correct course" when danger arises is how democracies crumble.

Another major contributing factor to societal ignorance is the tactic of attacking the press (something republicans have been doing since Goldwater). This is done to control the information flow to their voters. The message is: The press is nuts folks, facts don't matter, listen to me! In the era of Trump this has grown to alarming new levels of danger--banning the press, off camera pressers and threats to the press and some news organizations labeled as "fake news". This has the overall effect of negating facts and reality in favor of that politician's words and personal beliefs. Indeed this is a real disaster for the Constitutionally protected Free Press. Free Press is the foundation of a free society, when it's gone so is freedom.

And as we see everyday in the Trump Administration, it's serious.

When a President campaigns on removing 51 Million Americans--most of whom are kids--from insurance coverage, which would cost 43,000 Americans their lives per year---Americans should reflect on why they are apathetic to that suffering and loss of life and why they want to vote for it. Or why they think it's ok to shaft women who need maternity related healthcare, in a country that has the highest maternal mortality rate in the world. Apathy towards each other has led to paralyzing polarization and is killing our nation's progress.This apathy is not only for their fellow Americans, but for themselves. The " I'm a brave, brave boot strap patriot who don't need no help", even though you need help and use Obamacare the most is destroying us.

Don't lose sight of the future because of the political noise.

We need to start from the ground up and build a strong, educated society that is not afraid of the truth. A society that uses their mind to think and assess right from wrong and knows exactly what Constitutionally protected rights are. Facts need to be taken seriously and not denied in favor wanting to believe otherwise. When people go to the doctor and he/she shows them facts via the lab and imaging they don't say, "No doctor that's not the truth I know." They believe the facts presented. The exact same should be true when facts are presented to Americans. The truth should be seen and acknowledged-- on climate change, on pollution and on healthcare. When their President lies and when corruption and immorality is political policy-- the majority of Americans should see it, know it and rebuke it. Loudly. We should care about one another. We should care whether someone's child dies because of our vote. At the moment we don't.

This societal sickness - civic ignorance- is spilling over onto the rest of Americans and destroying our Democracy as we know it. Let's hope we can pull back, change course and save this 241 year old republic and our Constitution from this destructive, vile ignorance.

~The ignorance of one voter impairs the security of all~

The Morning Email

Wake up to the day's most important news.

Read the original:
Ignorance, Killer of Democracy - HuffPost