Our Democracy is a Lie — Here’s Why

BY SOFO ARCHON

Our democracy is a lie, and here I’ll show you exactly why.

First, consider what the word democracy means.

“Democracy” comes from the Greek word δημοκρατία, which is composed of two shorter words: δήμος—meaning “people”—and κράτος—meaning “power” or “rule.” It therefore means “rule by the people” and refers to a political system in which the power of decision-making belongs to the people.

Now let me ask you this:

How much power do people actually have in our so-called democratic system?

You might say that they have a lot, since they are the ones who elect those who govern them—namely, politicians. It’s just that their power is indirect, for they themselves don’t really make political decisions other than deciding who will make those decisions for them.

We call this form of democracy indirect democracy, and it is the most common one around the world. It is also called representative democracy—because, in theory, politicians represent the people.

But do they?

Not really. Although people do elect politicians, those politicians often make decisions with which the people disagree.

You see, what often happens is that, before elections, politicians present their proposed action plans. Yet once they are elected, they choose not to implement them. Instead, they implement different policies—sometimes even ones that contradict the very promises they made.

So where exactly is the “representative” part of representative democracy?

But things get even worse. Those who get elected are, generally speaking, propelled into power by economic elites—especially those who own or have close ties to major media outlets.

Research repeatedly shows that the greater and more positive the media exposure political candidates receive, the more likely they are to be elected. In other words, although people technically choose who to vote for, in reality the candidates who win are often those the media has already persuaded the masses to support.

Then there are lobbyists who spend enormous amounts of money supporting the campaigns of political parties they are affiliated with, thereby significantly influencing who gets elected and who does not. And of course, they do this just so they can have a strong say in policymaking.

Elected politicians, therefore, do not hold as much power as one might think. Instead, they are often mere puppets controlled by truly powerful actors behind the scenes. Yet most people are so deeply conditioned that they believe they themselves hold the power. Every few years, they go to the ballot box, cast a vote for their favorite politician or political party, and believe they are participating in a democratic process!

As you can see, our so-called democracy is a scam—a fake democracy. But as the well-known propaganda principle reminds us:

“Repeat a lie often enough, and it becomes the truth.”