Tough laws on illegal aliens seem to be working

[Frame57]

Originally Posted by Platapus

Be careful what you ask for. You might want to read Alexis de Tocqueville's writings "Democracy in America" and what he calls Tyranny of the Majority.

Take a moment to imagine how dumb the average American is concerning government and policy. Then consider that almost 1/2 of the population is not that smart.

A popular vote can be a dangerous thing if the populace is uneducated about issues affecting policy.

Take a contemporary issue: Off shore Oil drilling

According to some polls the majority of the people want off shore drilling. But how many of these citizens really understand the oil industry, economy, and how one affects the other? I don't think that too many of the citizens who are in favour of off shore oil drilling have the slightest clue about the industry and what is involved in starting up a new rig.

As for economy, most people have a hard time balancing their check book.

You mention post Keynesianism or Thermoeconomics to the average American citizen and you will get the "glazed doughnut" look before they run away.

So why would I even care if a majority of uneducated, inexperienced, unaccountable people want off shore oil drilling?

I want to know what engineers, economists, environmentalists, and policy experts have to say about off shore oil drilling. There is a reason we have specialists. They know more about some stuff than the masses.

There is a reason why there are so few democracies in the world and how many representative governments flourish.

So, then should we rule out all elections because half the populace is stupid?