Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence. I hope to fill your requirements for the later.

Let me preface this by saying that I don't wish to push any political agenda or shame a certain way of thinking in this discussion. I just wish to explain my thoughts

With all of that out of the way, I'll put my ideas on the table.

First, to know if a thing is dying, you must identify it. What is a democracy? The simple answer is a government in which the people have some hand in deciding the path their nation goes down. The innate problem with such a government is that not everyone is born to rule. Some are born stupid, others arrogant, greedy, hard headed, hostile, the list goes on. You can counter this with public education, but that can only go so far. A government by the people is not inherently best for the people because the people do not inherently know what is best for themselves. Democracy does however defend the rights of the weak, encourage individualism and learning, and let the common man decide their own destiny. Freedom is the most basic desire of man, and democracy safeguards it.

With all of that said, we can now identify how many democracies exist on our planet. The number is very close to zero. Most governments on earth are either oligarchies or republics that wish to be seen as democracies. The democracy has been talked about for hundreds of years like it is the cure for the human condition, and yet there hasn't been a true direct democracy for almost as long. So, to clarify, from now on, I am not discussing any actual democracy, I am discussing the idea of a democracy, and its reputation as the gold standard of government.

While there are no governments on earth that adhere strictly to the definition of democracy, there are very many that have democratic elements. We can use these as examples. Let's use the most obvious, the United States.

(If you know a lot about the american revolutionary war, you can skip this next paragraph)

The mid 1700's were an interesting time for the world. Vast empires fought for claims on foreign lands, ships brought people and goods to almost every continent. The world, for the first time, was interconnected. A man of great wealth from a fortunate country could have visited every continent except Antarctica. Naturally, men grew anxious, land was needed to feed the growing populations of Europe, and war broke out. The first "world war" per say was the Seven Years war, or if you live in the Americas, the French and Indian war. France and England fought on every discovered continent for dominance. War on this scale had never been waged before, and both sides were dirt poor in the aftermath. As most Americans know from elementary school, the English taxed the Americans, and the Americans rebelled. Tea was spilled, pamphlets printed, bullets heard around the world, and after seven bloody years, the revolutionary war was over. For the first time in the americas, a colony has rebelled against its motherland, and succeeded. While this would have a profound impact on the world at large, we are more interested in America right now.

America is a republic with semi-democratic elections. It always has been. part of this is due to technological limitations of the day, but also partially by design. The founders of America were raised on the latin classics. They had grown up surrounded by stories of heroic romans, ambitious generals, and divided senates. It is only natural that they would be ecstatic to make their own government and control their own destiny. Many of the founding fathers saw this as their chance to emulate their idols.

(If you know a lot about Roman history, you can skip this paragraph)

Rome became independent in a similar way to the USA. the Etruscans were the great power of Italy before Rome rebelled and conquered southern Italy. From this, the Senate and Peoples of Rome was born. (or SPQR in their abbreviation, but we can still simply call them Romans.) Rome would go on to rule the mediterranean world and beyond. However, we can skip most of its rise to power as it is irrelevant to the discussion at hand. Our next major events happen in the 150's BC. Rome has defeated Carthage, taken northern Italy from the Gauls, and Greece from Macedonia. All is not well domestically however, as while the citizen soldiers were gone, the rich were buying their family farms and staffing them with the slaves that those very soldiers conquered. The middle class had been betrayed and impoverished. I wont get into the details, but tensions grew between the rich and poor to the point of no return. Populist strongmen strived to gain the support of the people to be elected, the conservatives of the senate attempted to veto all efforts to help the poor, (before this time, the veto was only used sparingly. Tradition and reputation were the only things really stopping Roman politicians from abusing their power, but I'll get back to that) and riots regularly filled the streets. The senate was too reliant on the bribes they received from the rich to help the poor. Rome was in crisis.

American "democracy' is heavily inspired by Roman "democracy", which is to say that it is heavily flawed and relies heavily on the moral fiber of the elected to maintain itself. Greed however, is stronger than reason for some, and politicians take bribes and make deals under the table. It almost definitely started small. Doing a favor for a little extra money isn't bad if you use that money for good, right? Slowly, government became "just business". Looking at both modern day America and the last days of the Roman Republic, the similarities are eerie to say the least. The two sides, one claiming to represent the interests of the poor, the other defending the wealth of the rich.The frequent riots. The political corruption. All while putting on a smile and claiming to be fine. The extremists on both sides clearly think that the democratic process only gets in their way. All America needs now is for someone to finally start the transition. We may not know who this will be until it is too late. The ignorance of the people to what is unfolding before them will be what ultimately steals what little power they have left.

Well, that was depressing. Why don't we talk about the good side of democracy?

Democracy encourages the arts, scientific research, economic growth, and individualism. Let's break these down and discuss why they are encouraged.

The arts are encouraged because they help introduce new ideas to people in entertaining ways. Books can be about civil rights, but still tell a good story. Movies can take place in far off realms, but be about the duality of man. Democracies thrive on new ideas because the advantage of a democracy is its ability to change to a new situation.

Scientific research is encouraged because it helps educate the voter, and contributes to the quality of life enjoyed by the common man.

Economic growth is encouraged because taxes and trade policies are dictated by the people, so they can be changed at any time.

Individualism is encouraged in a democracy simply because everyone gets their own choice.

With all of the above stated, I guess we can come to a conclusion. Democracy is good, but we are not mature enough as a species to take advantage of it. Sin will hold us back until we get rid of it entirely.

The human condition has held us back for too long. We must begin the most important endeavour of all human history, and that is curing our sickness. Only then can we live in peace and prosperity. How is not for me to say. I just know where the problem is, and that is a start I suppose.

So give me your thoughts on the above. If I got any of my history wrong or if you disagree, please let me know. If this isn't as important as I think it is, or if I am wrong, I need to know so I don't waste my time pondering the solutions to these problems. All I know, is that according to everything I know, the future of humanity is at risk, and I am more loyal to the human race than I am to any nation or party.