Democracy or Autocracy?
This will likely be my last article in relation to what is happening with respect to democracy in the United States, as it appears America has set its own path and will soon have to live with the outcome. Being a citizen of Canada, I have never lived in an autocratic state, and have no wish or intention to do so in the future. Democracy may be imperfect and at times, chaotic, but compared to autocracy, kleptocracy or a theocratic state, infinitely better for the majority of its citizens.
There are those who will use reason, and those who will use irrationality, illogical and unreasonable assertions to base their political decisions on. I do not fall into the latter camp. And, as a Canadian, and certainly more than a casual observer of America’s slide away from a secular and democratic state, I cannot ignore the lies, the seeking of retribution and the hate that now surrounds and has entered into the political arena.
Carl Von Clausewitz stated that,
““War is not a mere act of policy but a true political instrument, a continuation of political activity by other means.”
It would seem that America is on the verge of illustrating the message of that quote. Simply put, democracy is under attack in the western nations. Whether one looks to Europe or North America, almost every country is facing polarization. It harkens back to a dangerous and deadly time 90 years ago. Something that hasn’t been seen since then is now occurring, and it revolves around the rise of the extreme right on a global scale and a move away from democratic institutions to what is an unknown future global order.
But why is democracy being assailed, and why now? What is the cause for this? There are a variety of theories and in the last ten years a huge amount of ink has been spilled on reaching a determination as to what caused this to occur. Many would argue a single cause, such as emigration or immigration (depending on location) as being to blame. Others would suggest that the root cause lies in class upheaval that has and is occurring in many western nations.
While nations with less power and influence have turned to the right, as with Italy’s return to fascism, it doesn’t necessarily affect, although it may infect, other nations, particularly those in the EU with larger right-wing interest groups that are now seeking political power.
However, there is one unassailable fact that is having a profound influence on the ‘middle class’ of these nations, (but particularly the United States), that is feeding the disenchantment of less-educated, primarily rural, middle-class Americans, —the fear of losing what has been an entitled white man’s world.
While vociferously denied by white men in the south, slavery, racism intolerance and hate were, and for some, still are part of both the heritage and the present of the south. It not only manifests itself societally, it does so politically. All that one need do is scratch the itch, and it bubbles to the surface of society.
In turn, race is affecting religion and has increasingly been the mechanism for transferring and operationalizing disenchantment with change. Science and education are now being eschewed by the right and as this group fears loss it increasingly seeks a scapegoat to target for its fortunes. Global warming, resource depletion, species eradication and climate change are all treated as left-wing disinformation. Scientific pursuits are denigrated and fundamentalist Christians, who feel that science is making Christianity’s beliefs irrelevant, are reacting as they feel threatened. And while that reaction is illogical and irrational at its heart, group think, as well as the rightwing media and isolation from alternate views entrenches it further.
However, science is not the sole purview of the left, so why don’t scientists on the right, politically stand up for scientific inquiry? Lies have become so entrenched in the beliefs of the right, that facts, —proven, validated, and corroborated scientifically, are ignored.
At the same time, it is true that the ‘rich’ are becoming increasingly richer, while the middle class is under stress and in many cases, becoming the working poor, as an ever-increasing void now exists between the rich and poor. Today, rather than attempt to find a fix for this inequality, the right has decided to use it as a wedge issue. In an of itself, this would not be seen to be problematic, except that now, the right increasingly is in the process of creating scapegoats to be targeting by those who feel disenfranchised and powerless.
All that is necessary for lies to become ‘alternate facts; is for unethical politicians and media to stoke the lies, disinformation and misinformation. And so it is that there is a right-wing media willing and poised to misrepresent the facts and to take advantage of the situation. Polarization and Group Think have further exacerbated the problem. White supremacists and extremists were then emboldened as the truth became irrelevant within the political forum. Legitimacy, once provided by the highest courts in the land are increasingly being used for political advantage. Stacking of the courts with partisan members of the legal community has further damaged governance and the institutions that had held America together for almost 240 years.
The polarization is now so complete that it is likely that less than 10% of the electorate are not entrenched in their beliefs and willing to use open dialogue, ethics and moral persuasion to reach conclusions. Currently two opposing realities exist, which typically are diametrically opposed to the others position, irrespective of its intent. Partisanship politics without restraint has led to a Congress in the United States that is completely dysfunctional. Populism has taken over, and there is no doubt that it is damaging the fabric of governance. Institutional checks and balances are being disassembled in order to provide less accountability for those in power.
Increasingly, a division is being bolstered that frames the other side, not as collaborators, but as enemies. Politically today, it is increasingly obvious that there is an alignment between the working class and men and women who are white, religious, yet headed towards becoming a minority in the near future.
This has also led to a rapid polarization within this group, to the right, and to focus on retention of the status quo. The perception is that the party or parties that will protect the ‘status quo’ is increasingly seen as the Republican Party, and as the disparity between rich and poor (or at least the overwhelming perception) exists, in America, Republicans are increasingly building walls. These walls extend beyond the political environment, to where polarization around race, colour, religion and status increasingly separates people. And particularly worrying, it increasingly is entering into education, the law, and public policy.
As people seek economic opportunity, or flee governments that are either unstable or prone to disadvantage or persecution from certain groups, they flood towards economically advantaged nations, who are seeing a rapid influx of immigrants as well as economic refugees. Those groups that have held a historical advantage have become less tolerant to these groups, particularly so if those individuals seem to be gaining either economic power or political opportunity that is perceived as upsetting the existing status quo.
While this situation has always existed as groups who have sought an improved life immigrated to richer western nations, today this has increasingly come under pressure, which will only worsen as climate change, scarcity of resources and warfare impel people to flee or seek a better life.
Due to the fact that these same individuals, once emigrated, are willing to work harder to achieve success, this is perceived to encroach on the lifestyles, economic opportunity or status quo of those either unable (older white men and women in particular) or white youth who fear losing their entitlements. Some unethical politicians, particularly on the right have used this to stoke fear within the United States. Today a backlash has occurred that is now seeing translation politically into protective measures meant to constrain immigration and maintain white privilege. That force has created a movement that has led to a more radical right-wing, politically and societally.
In the past, most western nations remained stable simply because immigration ensured that those entering resembled, at least to a greater degree, those already with citizenship inside the country. Predominantly white nations such as the United States, where colonialism really didn’t exist as an influence, were and are most affected today by the rapid influx of immigrants.
In 2020, Ezra Klein wrote “Why We’re Polarized” by AvidReaderPress.com, in which he stated his assertion that polarization is occurring across a variety of arenas. They include the ideological, educational, economic, racial and cultural arenas.
He writes,
“A party that keeps losing voters has two choices. It can change itself—its agenda, its standard-bearers, its temperament—to win over voters. Or it can turn against democracy, using the power it still holds to disenfranchise or weaken the voters who threaten it.”
He suggests that in the United States the Republican Party has chosen the second path and chosen it decisively.
This decision was and is an inflection point for American politics. Rather than pursue an agenda of positive change within the party, it has doubled down on an old agenda. One used by autocrats, revolutionaries and fascists alike. One that is connected to the endemic racism that still exists in the United States. Instead, it chose to find a scapegoat for the ills being experienced by its followers, and so it is that it has resorted to lies in order to incite people to action, violent action.
Similar to the agenda used by countless groups in opposition to an existing government, it chose to publicly align itself with a man willing to destroy democracy for his own ends. What was and is different this time is that the Republican Party has decided to pursue power at all costs. It doesn’t care if how it achieves its ends is ethical, moral or whether it told the truth. Power and economic control is now all that matters.
The values, ideals and institutional organs that have held America up as the beacon of freedom and protector of life, liberty and democracy, is now, all imperilled. If the forces on the right succeed, then the path back to democracy will be difficult and filled with risks once dreamed to be unfathomable.
But it isn’t just America. Canadians are seeing the same political swing, as those on the extreme right believe they have a champion. In Canada, that champion is Pierre Poilievre, a right-wing Conservative who apparently supports those with extreme views on immigration, education, resource allocation (or depletion), climate science (or its denial) and enjoys confrontation over either cooperation or collaboration. While pretence on his part suggests a willingness to collaborate, his actions speak volumes.
A member of the 1% in Canada, Poilievre’s net worth exceeds 25 million, so it’s no surprise he’s not interested in changing capital gains taxes in Canada. Rather he’s interested in maintaining his wealth and in assuring the 1% that he’s one of them. It’s time the rich in Canada, paid their fair share. A flat tax, irrespective of wealth is what’s required.
It is time to ‘stand up’, and be counted. We, the collective majority of democratic loving citizens of the world cannot remain silent. Peaceful but intentional and sustained political involvement that is purposeful, intelligent, but direct is necessary. Quiet indignation leads to nothing more than subservience to malicious men and their goals, whose only interest is self-aggrandizement, power and wealth.
Edmund Burke said it best,
“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”
Be well, be safe, be present.
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