To think that democracy isn't necessarily the best form of government?

[Thebestwaytoscareatory]

For example, I'm interested in politics and governance and have spent time learning about the topic, yet my vote counts exactly as much as someone who thinks all brown people are rapists or that all women are nothing more than broodmares.

This doesn't sit right with me. Surely we should acknowledge that some opinions are not as valid as others and take steps to ensure that the lowest common denominator isn't represented equally at elections?

This. Who decides? Based on your post OP, you're a classist bigot, so that's you struck off for a start

The counter argument to this is always:

So what system do you think is better?

In truth no system is better. Democracy is the least flawed.

Other options are worse. Much worse.

And not all democracies are equal - there are lots of different forms and different levels of corruption going on.

Couldn’t disagree more, OP, and find your position a bit scary. “My opinion should count for more because I’m right” is both illogical and the first step towards autocracy. Despots throughout the ages have justified tyranny on the basis that they know what’s best for the people they rule.

There are lots of problems with democracy, certainly. One protection against them is the modern human rights regime which seeks to treat some rights as so fundamental as to be outside the vagaries of democracy, by making them matters of international agreement and (in some jurisdictions, not the UK) entrenching them constitutionally. This is a much better solution than arguing that people with the “right” views get more of a say (although a critic might argue that it’s effectively the same thing).

Many people who voted for “brexit” feel the government didn’t deliver the brexit they voted for so that is a poor example to use.

Saying that people are voting for the “right wing” tories is another poor example as many people feel the Tory party is not in fact a right wing party.

like everything it’s all subjective and one person’s idea of the “lowest common denominator” will differ from yours OP.

The views and examples would argue that OP is very far from ‘right wing’ .

I doubt the public could explain the intricacies of Johnson’s policies versus Sunak’s.

I think they simply wanted Brexit and right wing politics, and see Labour as the party of immigrants and the work shy.

This whole ‘they want us to be arguing with each other so we don’t focus on them’ is a bit cringey and makes no sense for that reason. If you want a change of government you have to persuade voters, not the government, so ‘arguing with each other’ is the best thing to happen really

Benevolent dictatorship would be best, but no dictator is going to stay benevolent for long with all that corrupting power, so it would only ever be good for a little while.

And who decides what opinions are correct?

Also governance is about decision making processes and frameworks and how to govern an organisation. It is not about government. The two are different things.

Isnt the saying thats its the best of all the alternatives.

I think the issue with uk democracy is we dont have the best system of seperatung powers between houses and judicuary and we have an indirectly elected pm who energes from a party with most votes, plus a hereditary head of state. With first past the post on constituencies. It always fascinates me how the governing party can have 30 odd percent of the votes.

Not sure what Id go for though. Lots of different structures of democracy and voting systems out there.

Democracy is short termist and does allow all to vote. But you do sound a bit like a tra, no debate you are right with no practicalities sorted. Which is often typical of the left, those on the right tend to be more pragmatic and willing to compromise for the longer term good, traditionally anyway maybe not now.
Interesting that Rachel reeves is going around saying Labour would keep most policies, not raise taxes, use the barge etc for migrants, so to win Labour have to basically meet Johnson type promises. He was very central one nation tory not right in the party by any means.

Democracy is the best form of government, but FPTP is probably the worst way of electing one.

So students who will come into the workforce at some point in the future should not have a stake in how policy that will impact them in the future?

so people who are made redundant should not have a say in government?

what about all the undesirables such as recent arrival, the simple minded, the old, the young, the secret cabal of internationalists who want a world government and control society from the shadows, the disabled, the long term sick and all the other subhumans who should only be dictated to rather than have a say in how things are run? Why not go back to a society where only the landowners can vote and women who just do simple things and don’t really work but just do the housework and bring up children should try and persuade their husbands as to which government they should vote for but really should not worry their pretty little heads with the complicated notions of politics, economics and the gold standard and leave that to their betters who really pay the bills. After all women are just leeches and live on their husband’s income so they should be treated like children and not really have a say in how the government affects them.

No dear, society is not like a household.

Doesnt that depend on who's doing the educating?

”to qualify to vote, you need to be a net taxpayer. So, not all taxpayers have the vote - just those who pay in more than they receive from the government/local council at that point in time.”

Most people are not net tax payers, when you factor in the costs of public services.

Furthermore, if someone is not a “net tax payer”, but would like to be, that person would not have the ability to vote for a party that they thought might improve their lot. (Maybe a party that pledges to fund training for high paying jobs, for example) So, they may have no means of even becoming eligible to vote.

Because of vested interests and to give the semblance of democracy to the great unwashed.

I agree that informed opinions are better than uninformed opinions, when ultimately they affect other people's lives. However I think this applies on an issue by issue basis and not to a General Election. You can have special knowledge of politics, but that doesn't give you any information about whether candidate X or Y would be a 'better' MP, which is the only choice you actually get to make. Assuming that is that you're lucky enough to live somewhere where your vote counts.

In the UK, a shift to proportional representation and coalition might work better and be fairer. Yes you’d “get
less done” but so what, there would be fewer rash decisions and more focus on what matters.

Oh good grief. At least it has now been said openly. Democracy is not wanted. The rich elite want to rule the rest of us, and do what they want with us. And what they want is to force us to work for as little as possible to maximise the benefit for them, without actually promoting mass unrest. Come back Ford, otherwise we will have Augustus.

“PurpleChrayne · Today 09:06
I lived in a communist dictatorship for a decade and people seemed a lot happier, to be honest. It was only the encroachment of western democratic ideals that started to tarnish it.”

Nice try. May be you care to tell us why you are not living there anymore? Or were you part of the clan that rule the country? Or one of their offspring’s?

Yes brexit is proof that democracy doesn’t work

Sounds horrendous to me, I am no where near as knowledgable about politics as some here which is why I think that there should be better education at school about politics. To some extent what op is advocating comes about naturally as many many people think they don't understand or don't care about politics so just don't vote at all. If people are equipped with proper knowledge and understand that politics is not some weird and unintelligible thing but encompasses everything they are concerned about at local level from bins, roads, dog poo etc then perhaps more people would get involved in reading party manifestos and reseaching to decide their beliefs around politics and vote based on that not just on gutter press diction and like / dislike of the individuals involved, we should be voting on party politics not cos we think Boris is a hoot.

"The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter."

Winston Churchill

Also Churchill: “Many forms of Government have been tried, and will be tried in this world of sin and woe. No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise. Indeed it has been said that democracy is the worst form of Government except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time”

I think voters should be able to vote in either general elections or the X Factor but not both.

Quite the opposite.