Democracy

Today, I want to write about democracy. I only want to explore what is known as the "democratic peace" theory. In short, the theory states that as a general rule, (there are always exceptions) two democratic states will not go to war with each other. When looking back in history, this is certainly arguable especially considering the ambiguous and dynamic definition of democracy.

Either way, there is certainly a trend that democratic states tend to be more peaceful. Not only do they tend not to fight with each other, but statistically, democracies are less likely to start wars even with non-democracies. Obviously, there are many wars and sadly we don't have to look very far to find to find prime examples of democracies vs. non-democracies but, once again, there is such a trend.

Furthermore, if democracies do decide to go to war, 80 percent of the time, they are likely to leave victorious. How encouraging is that!

There seems to be 3 explanations as to why specifically democracies are less violent. The first relates to democracy's natural structure. That there are checks and balances. The country is not run by an emotional, possibly unstable dictator, who has absolute power. The decision-making process is long and arduous. Additionally, public opinion plays a much larger role in democracies and the public has the potential to seriously affect policy.

The second explanation is that most of the time, democracy is synonymous with liberalism. Ever since childhood, we are inculcated with morals that value discussion and negotiation over violence and conflict.

The third reason has to do with economics. One of the more essential elements to democracies is a large middle class. (A large middle class is usually the result of capitalism, especially in its social democratic format.) The ultimate symbol of a large middle class is McDonalds. Thus, the "democratic peace" rule can also be referred to as the "McDonalds law." Capitalistic countries are fully aware of the costly price of war. In war, many middle class citizens stand to lose excessive amounts of time and money. They are empowered by their right to vote and they indeed influence and attempt to avoid costly wars whenever possible.

Once again, this does not mean that democracies are visions of Eden. However, when it comes to war, democracies are indeed more apt to look for peaceful ways out.
There is a statement by someone famous (I don't remember who...if someone does please let me know) that goes along the lines that democracy is, by no means, the ultimate type of government, but that in the meantime it is certainly the best of the worst.

Good night and good luck.