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What are your thoughts about Democracy? |
Patrick-in-CA
Joined: Jul 21, 2004
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From: Sourhern Oregon, USA
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Quote:
| Religion was mostly superstition, science for the most part sciolism, popular education merely a means of forcing the stupid and repressing the bright, so that all the youth of the rising generation might conform to the same dull, dead level of democratic mediocrity. |
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--Charles Waddell Chesnut, Conjure Tales and Stories of the Color Line
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[ This Message was edited by: Patrick-in-CA on 2004-07-24 17:42 ] | |
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Patrick-in-CA
Joined: Jul 21, 2004
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From: Sourhern Oregon, USA
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Ya don't say? |
Sammy_boy
Joined: Mar 31, 2004
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From: Staffordshire, United Kingdom
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Any system that has religion at it's base if flawed, and I wouldn't want anyone having a say on my religious beliefs, or lack of them!
I believe religion has (and still is) used as a method of controlling the masses. Spirituality shouldn't be about what some berk in a costume telling us what we should and shouldn't eat, and whether we can use condoms or not! It's something that should be from within, and not tied to one 'religion'. That may help solve some of our quarrels, and pointless 'holy wars'.
Sorry, had to get that off my chest! 
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[ This Message was edited by: Sammy_boy on 2004-07-25 18:17 ] |
Patrick-in-CA
Joined: Jul 21, 2004
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From: Sourhern Oregon, USA
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I couldn't agree with you more.
I stumbled upon the quote above quite by accident - it kind of shocked me. I'm not a huge proponent of pure democracy but the quote totally condemns it. Any thoughts?
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Sammy_boy
Joined: Mar 31, 2004
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From: Staffordshire, United Kingdom
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Interesting quote, though! I can see the point about popular education, it can be bent or re-engineered to suit whoever's in power, if they so wished to do so. I guess this is also where the phrase 'blinded with science' comes from too!
Thing is, what would be used instead of popular education?
"All it takes for evil to flourish is for good men to do nothing" - Edmund Burke
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Patrick-in-CA
Joined: Jul 21, 2004
Posts: 0
From: Sourhern Oregon, USA
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What I think Chesnut is saying about Democracy is that it is a form of government that tends to force egalitarianism on people. It appears his stance is that not all people are equal in talent, abilities, intelligence, etc. It appears he is saying that the education system in democracies today tends to dumb down the smart and advance the stupid ... in a vain attempt to make everyone "equal".
This quote caught me off guard. I am not a major proponent of pure democracy so I thought I'd agree with Chesnut - but I'm not ready to accept this kind of statement. However, conversely, I'm having a difficult time refuting it and I'm not sure if my resistance to his postulation is my own, possibly incorrect, belief that people are created equal.
I tossed this out for discussion to get some different points of view.
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Posted: 2004-07-24 18:42
