The Truth About Democracy

If you listen to your teachers and professors, or to the media personalities, democracy is a glorious expression of the sovereign popular will. The informed citizenry use their reason and the facts to reach their own conclusions, and cast their votes for who they have decided is the best candidate.

...but as we all know that's hogwash.

The truth about democracy is that it's not about the citizens individually making choices and voting. It's about various small groups of passionate and well-organized individuals fighting for control of the masses. The question isn't, who can rationally persuade the majority. The question is, who can by hook or by crook lead the sheep toward the desired outcome. You will NEVER get a majority of voters to understand the issues to the extent necessary for them to truly make rational political decisions. They will be led the the nose; the only question is, by whom? Will the sheep be led to their slaughter, or will they be led to salvation. Either way, they will be led. History bears out this truth without exception.

George Washington's plea to avoid forming political parties (factions) was noble and well-intentioned - but it was also naive. There will always be parties, political machines: 'machine' is an apt term for what a party is and does. It is not ideological in function, even if it's goal is to impose an ideology; it does not hold conferences and rationally persuade rational citizens. It churns out propaganda and slogans and deals in favors and patronage and intimidation in order to capture enough of the sheep to achieve it's objectives. It makes no difference whether this is the Communist party or the Libertarian Party. They all function the same way, and they have to.

I'm not so sure that we need to officially form a party at this juncture, maybe in the future. But we should start thinking of ourselves in different terms. We may have already gone as far as we can go as an ideological movement. We need to start thinking of ourselves as a party, a machine for capturing and delivering the necessary proportion of the masses. We don't believe in "getting out the vote" in virtue of some abstract principle of democracy; we want to get out OUR vote, and preferably suppress the vote for our opponents. Of course, I'm not advocating anything illegal; there are more than enough legal (if somewhat unethical) tools at our disposal with which we can achieve our ends.

So my humble plea is that you become a realist. Do not change your devotion to the ideology of liberty, do not compromise it one jot, no matter what. Compromising is worse than losing. But, start thinking like the GOP or Democratic party bosses and con-men that we hate, because in order to beat them we have to play their game. Start thinking like a political realist when it comes to strategy, which means more effort on the non-ideological front (turnout of the vote, taking power in local party organizations, raising money, etc) and less on the ideological front (trying to rationally convince fundamentally irrational voters). Balance out the two as you see fit, I'm not suggesting any particular formula. But, do NOT neglect the importance of sheep-herding, in the vain hope that you will rationally persuade the sheep.

As Dr. Paul always says, we're trying to get the message of liberty out there, but the best way to do that is to WIN elections. Realpolitik.

End Rant.