Freedom, Liberty and Democracy

Type :

Term papers

Pages :

5 pages

Format :

.doc

Published date :

07/13/2009

Category :

Political science

Sub category :

Political science

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Summary :

Democracy as the best political system
Democracy in the United States
Democracy in the US post 9/11
The idea of freedom
The Personal Responsibility Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act
The major flaws of democracy
Conclusion
Bibliography

Abstract

democracy is considered by many to be the best type of political system possible, and among this group many believe the system of democracy in the United States is also the best of the best. This notion is one worth examining, and one that in some way has become more relevant in the post-September 11 era. This is because that event, as horrible as it was, brought about fundamental questions about liberty in the democratic model. To this it could be said that a principle function of democracy is to protect liberty, and that these attacks were an attack on freedom. Many of the deaths in this attack can be attributed in some way to America's policy that tries to protect liberty, for example its relatively open borders. This respect for people's liberty has become an important component of America's liberal democratic system, but it has also made it more difficult to protect against attacks on freedom. In this sense, in this post-September 11 era, democracy can be regarded as an adversary of freedom. If one recalls the idea of the tyranny of the majority that was argued by John Stuart Mill and Alexis de Tocqueville, it can be seen that this principle has been employed across airports all across the United States.

It has come to the point where the middle-class to eager to see searches, x-rays and racial profiling, as long as it results in the terrorists being foiled in some way. What is happening is that democracy in the United States is unraveling as "the majority" is attacking the traditional notion of liberties. The democratic system in the United States has developed since 9/11 in a way that chastises anyone who does not go along with this new majority.