Democracy and Futility

The democratic process is lauded and held to such a place of hallowedness in the western world, that little else can be as important to the modern state. Seen as the ultimate bulwark against tyranny to some, democracy is paramount to freedom in the American mind, and any threat to democracy is as an enslaving tyrant to the watchful citizen. It is our way of making our voices heard, we are told, and casting a ballot is just as much a civic duty as it is a right to be cherished. An attack on democracy rallies the freedom loving folk across the country to band together and fight back, whatever the cost. How much do we cherish the right of the people to decide? How much, indeed.

The Greeks did many favors for the later thinkers of the western world, experimenting as they did with the extant political ideas that pervade our philosophies today. They showed us autocracy was not the only form of government to be feared, and that just as much horror could be born from oligarchy, militarism, and even pure democracy. Some of us can recall learning in government courses about the founding father’s reasoning for implementing a federal, constitutional republic rather than a pure democracy. Among other reasons, mob rule can end in ruin just as surely as dictatorship, and as such, more level headed representatives are needed to weigh the wishes of their constituency against the needs of the republic. And who can argue with results? This country has demonstrated a stability in government and expanse in power that is unprecedented in history. Our people have been prosperous too, with the ubiquitous “American Dream” being essentially linked with democracy, giving the people the ability to steer the ship where they want it to go, at least, through an elected representative.

With all these things being true, why does it seem that fewer and fewer Americans trust our “democracy”? And by that same token, why are our leaders warning us that our “democracy” is under attack? In both recent presidential elections, voices on either side of the aisle shouted in opposition to the election results, claiming fraud, Russian collusion, and the deepest of conspiracies to subvert our most precious democracy. And like clockwork, both sides cannot resist calling out the other when they deny the results, upholding the official narrative when it suits them. Is this just the way of things now? Are we doomed to experience unrest and conflict after every election, like any backwater banana republic? If our leaders are to be trusted, then the answer is most definitely yes. Nothing rallies a voting base like a stern warning that the other side is planning to steal the election. Like children, we reason that, surely if I voted for my candidate then that means he should win! Everyone I know is voting for him, so if he loses it must be fraud! Our leaders feast on this mindset, knowing that the more dissension they can sow, the more deeply they can sway our vote. But is it our vote they want at all?

Perhaps the most disgusting feeling any of us have at the ballots is, does this vote matter? Do any of them matter? Even if we ignore the classic “how can just one vote make a difference” cliche, we are all faced with that other looming idea, “if voting mattered they’d never let us do it”. It is a compelling sentiment, and one that feels more true the longer our country persists. With the development of bureaucracy, our federal government found a way to sidestep the will of the people, with departments maintaining their presence in government long after the executive who created them moves on. These cancerous tumors on our government perpetuate their existence through fear, deception, and backroom deals, or at least, that is how it seems. Even more pervasive and powerful are the pork-barreling back scratchers in congress that make veritable deals with the devil when they legislate on behalf of the corporations that paid their tickets. It would not be unreasonable to assume that we all have wrestled with this question recently, “do I really feel represented in my government at all?”.

The battlefield of political thought in the 21st century seems to be online, and that gives the whole affair a decidedly “macro” feel. The advent of radio, and later television, accelerated the process of nationalizing the argument, until now, hardly a thought is given to the issues of the village, town, or county. Not when Dave Johnson in Albuquerque disagrees with John Davis in Syracuse. How can we feel united when such a disparate chasm lies between us and the targets of our ire online? Anyone who has traveled across our great country knows that cultural divides are very real, and perhaps we have been testing the limits of our cohesion this whole time. And perhaps, that bond is ready to break.

Could it be that our politicians do not want our vote after all? The uni-party will always win, and what the bastards really want is unrest, paranoia, and fear! How much easier is a mob to control when it is eating from your hand, full of spite and hatred for the other side?

There is a term embedding itself in the common parlance, once only known to the perpetually online but now breaking through to mainstream, that being “black pilled”. This modified artifact from 1999’s The Matrix is meant to describe that attitude of apocalyptic pessimism in the face of an uncontrollable, unchangeable world. A feeling not unlike a feudal peasant in the dark ages, only, the black pilled individual has seen the city on the hill, he just cannot go there. When this mindset is adopted, devotees see few options apart from depressive reclusivity, autonomous ignorance, or even violent resistance. This country, this “society”, is too far gone, they might say, and nothing we can do, no amount of activism or “democracy” can save us. And it is hard to argue with that prescription, especially when the prescribers do not want to be convinced otherwise. It is easier to wallow in the muck than to pull yourself out, especially when you might have to ask your neighbor to help you out.

In the end, perhaps that is the most important thing we can do. Help our neighbors, involve ourselves in our real communities, and avoid the mire of internet macro politics. Vote for the candidate who you feel would represent you best, but then vote for that local proposition you always ignore on the ballot. Take pride in your community and build up bonds with the people who are actually around you, not the ghosts online who are thirsty for combat and vitriol. Vote as long as you are able to, but put your time, effort, and faith into real relationships in your real life. If it turns out that our vote really does not matter and our government is corrupted beyond saving, we will only have each other to turn to.