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Quote by Peter J. Emerson

“Come the next election, in a two-party or two-party-plus system, a very small swing amongst the voters, a slight shift of the median voter on the normal distribution curve, may lead to a complete change of government, whereupon a new set of persons takes over, and a new set of ministers accepts collective responsibility for policies which, in some instances, completely overturn the decisions of the former administration. Yet all is due to just a very small swing. Majoritarian politics, which some claim offers stable government, is actually part of a system which perpetuates instability, especially if viewed from a long-term perspective.”

Quote by Peter J. Emerson

Book:From Majority Rule to Inclusive Politics
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From Majority Rule to Inclusive Politics

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Peter J. Emerson

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“Ultimately, there is no way that laws or institutions can prevent a democracy from becoming illiberal. All our institutionalized protections can be undone, given enough time, by an unsympathetic majority. The constitution can be amended, new judges can be appointed, agencies can be dismantled, and freedoms can be curtailed. And once a democracy devolves into illiberal majoritarianism, it rarely stays democratic for long. 'If America ever loses its liberty,' Tocqueville prophesied, 'the fault will surely lie with the omnipotence of the majority, which may drive minorities to despair and force them to resort to physical force.' Institutions can slow down the march toward majoritarian tyranny, but they cannot stop it. To remain truly democratic, people have to be willing to protect each other's rights and interests even when they control enough votes to do otherwise. They have to recognize each other's right to exist, express opinions, and participate fully in the political process. And they have to preserve the laws and institutions that guarantee human rights and civil liberties for everyone, not just for the ruling majority. We must have enough regard for each other that we decline to use the mechanisms of democracy to treat our fellow citizens unjustly. Another way to say this is that we must not be enemies. We must be friends.”

PoliticsFriendshipDemocracyEthicsMajority RuleCivic Dialogue
Book:We Must Not Be Enemies: Restoring America's Civic Tradition
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“How do I hate the tide of vulgar thought! Profane, unjust, with childish folly fraught; It breaks and bends the rays of truth divine, And by its own conceptions measures mine. [...] Hippocrates arrived in season, Just as his patient (void of reason!) Was searching whether reason's home, In talking animals and dumb, Be in the head, or in the heart, Or in some other local part. All calmly seated in the shade, Where brooks their softest music made, He traced, with study most insane, The convolutions of a brain; And at his feet lay many a scroll-- The works of sages on the soul. Indeed, so much absorb'd was he, His friend, at first, he did not see. A pair so admirably match'd, Their compliments erelong despatch'd. In time and talk, as well as dress, The wise are frugal, I confess. Dismissing trifles, they began At once with eagerness to scan The life, and soul, and laws of man; Nor stopp'd till they had travell'd o'er all The ground, from, physical to moral. My time and space would fail To give the full detail.”

InsanityMajority RuleMisconceptions
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“You have a donkey, so have I, and they graze in the same field. The day comes when I conceive a dislike for mine. I go to shoot it,draw a bead on it, fire: the brute falls in its tracks. I inspect the victim, and find to my horror that it is your donkey. I appear on your doorstep with the remains and say--what? 'I say, old sport, I'm awfully sorry, &c., I've shot your donkey by adccident'? Or 'by mistake'? Then again, I go to shoot my donkey as before, draw a bead on it, fire-but as I do so, the beasts move, and to my horror yours falls. Again the scene on the doorstep--what do I say? 'By mistake'? Or 'by accident'?”

InadvertentlyA Plea For Excuses
Author:J.L. Austin
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