tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5806884.post3079741959437896349..comments2023-10-31T03:18:26.963-07:00Comments on Great Guys Weblog: Flawed MetricsBrethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15063508651955739056noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5806884.post-67308795733902638422010-09-18T11:43:57.427-07:002010-09-18T11:43:57.427-07:00Examples of more or less mature democracies that a...<i>Examples of more or less mature democracies that abandoned democracy are hard to find, but then so are mature democracies.</i><br /><br />The Founding Fathers had done their homework and this is something of which they were aware. Hence, "... a republic, if you can keep it."Howardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14980738175201874292noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5806884.post-42297689222819950452010-09-17T16:34:34.715-07:002010-09-17T16:34:34.715-07:00Of course I consider the USSR and Red China milita...Of course I consider the USSR and Red China military dictatorships. Each state was founded by a party-controlled army in a civil war, a relationship that never changed, despite some weaving of constitutional figleaves.<br /><br />The Weimar Republic was a foreign creation, never accepted via a plebiscite or any other constitutional means, and as practical matter backed only by social democrats, and not enthusiastically even by them.<br /><br />If you want examples of actual popular democracies that voluntarily switched, your best shot would be Italy.<br /><br />Examples of more or less mature democracies that abandoned democracy are hard to find, but then so are mature democracies.Harry Eagarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04196202758858876402noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5806884.post-37389873962505502912010-09-16T20:50:03.606-07:002010-09-16T20:50:03.606-07:00Harry Eagar wrote: "I didn't buy any of t...Harry Eagar wrote: "<i>I didn't buy any of their stinking products, so that didn't work.</i>"<br /><br />Yes, but you need more than one voter to vote the bums out as well. If the bums don't get voted out I'm still under their thumbs. On the other hand, you didn't have to buy their stinking product even though they continued to exist.<br /><br />Harry Eagar wrote: "<i>If you don't distinguish between a participatory democracy and a military dictatorship...</i>"<br /><br />I do distinguish between the two, but things change. For example, the Weimar Republic morphed into the Third Reich quite quickly. Secondly, I wasn't under the impression that YOU considered the workers' paradises of either the USSR or Mao's China military dictatorships, yet major politicides happened in both those places.Brethttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15063508651955739056noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5806884.post-14201658973312214512010-09-16T19:42:55.518-07:002010-09-16T19:42:55.518-07:00I didn't buy any of their stinking products, s...I didn't buy any of their stinking products, so that didn't work.<br /><br />If you don't distinguish between a participatory democracy and a military dictatorship, we have nothing to talk about.Harry Eagarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04196202758858876402noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5806884.post-87597793934958272042010-09-16T14:38:07.540-07:002010-09-16T14:38:07.540-07:00Governments carried out the Great Genocides/Politi...Governments carried out the Great Genocides/Politicides of the 20th century. So no, it's not obtuse, since governments were specifically the actors involved.<br /><br />In free markets you don't have to throw the bums out. Just stop buying their products and services and they quickly become irrelevant.Brethttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15063508651955739056noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5806884.post-15255658056348407692010-09-16T11:09:13.938-07:002010-09-16T11:09:13.938-07:00Yeah, but in a democracy we can throw the governme...Yeah, but in a democracy we can throw the government bums out. <br /><br />It was obvious to me -- and to most of my friends -- that Wall Street was driving the financial structure over a cliff, but aside from grousing, what could we do?<br /><br />Equating all states also is obtuse. Aside from Somalia and a few other places, almost everyplace has government. Not nearly every place has genocides.<br /><br />The biggest current genocide is occurring right now in a min-archist area.Harry Eagarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04196202758858876402noreply@blogger.com