Freedom Survey
Answering Question # 8
8. What form of government did the founders say was unstable and incompatible with personal security or the rights of property.
a Democracy
b Monarchy
c Republic
d Communism
People commonly refer to America as a democracy, and often act like it is. Yet, virtually all the founders believed pure democracy to be a very bad form of government. They saw it as “the tyranny of the mob.” James Madison said:
“Democracies
have ever been spectacles of turbulence and contention; have ever been
found incompatible with personal security or the rights of property;
and have, in general, been as short in their lives as they have been
violent in their deaths.”14
Madison was certainly not alone in his distaste for democracy as seen in the following quotes:
“A simple democracy... is one of the greatest of evils.” 15
— Dr. Benjamin Rush, Signer of the Declaration
“Pure
democracy cannot subsist long nor be carried far into the departments
of state, it is very subject to caprice and the madness of popular
rage.” 16
— John Witherspoon, Pastor and signer of the Declaration
“The
experience of all former ages had shown that of all human governments,
democracy was the most unstable, fluctuating and short-lived.” 17
— John Quincy Adams, 6th President of the United States
This view of democracy was not based on theory but upon a careful study of governments through history. Scottish historian Alexander Tytler, Professor of Universal History and Greek and Roman Antiquities in the University of Edinburgh, was a contemporary of the founders and shared a similar view of democracies. Below is a quote that is often attributed to him, though there is no clear source to connect it to him. However, reading Tytler’s views reveal that he said things similar and leaves little doubt that he would agree with it.
“A
democracy is always temporary in nature; it simply cannot exist as a
permanent form of government. A democracy will continue to exist up
until the time that voters discover that they can vote themselves
generous gifts from the public treasury. From that moment on, the
majority always votes for the candidates who promise the most benefits
from the public treasury, with the result that every democracy will
finally collapse due to loose fiscal policy, which is always followed
by a dictatorship.”18
It is unnerving how much the description above resembles the condition of the United States today. In 2011, the Census Bureau reported that 49.2% of Americans received benefits from one or more government programs. Once becoming accustomed to receiving free goods, it is unlikely people will vote for it to cease, unless of course, they realize the destructive long term results.
Once again, we should remember that knowledge is the power to make intelligent choices – the choices that can get our nation off the road of socialism, which leads to tyranny, and on the road to prosperity and freedom.
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Answers Index Answering Question #9
Answers Index Answering Question #9
14. James Madison, Federalist Papers #10
15. Benjamin Rush, The Letters of Benjamin Rush , L. H. Butterfield, editor (Princeton: Princeton University Press for the American Philosophical Society, 1951), Vol. I, p. 523, to John Adams on July 21, 1789
16. The Works of John Witherspoon (Edinburgh: J. Ogle, 1815), Vol. VII, p. 101, Lecture 12 on Civil Society
17. John Quincy Adams, The Jubilee of the Constitution. A Discourse Delivered at the Request of the New York Historical Society, in the City of New York on Tuesday, the 30th of April 1839; Being the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Inauguration of George Washington as President of the United States, on Thursday, the 30th of April, 1789 (New York: Samuel Colman, 1839), p. 53
18. This quote appears to be a paraphrase or a compilation of different quotes. However, reading Tytler’s view make it very believable that he could have or would have said something very similar. The concepts represented are sound.
15. Benjamin Rush, The Letters of Benjamin Rush , L. H. Butterfield, editor (Princeton: Princeton University Press for the American Philosophical Society, 1951), Vol. I, p. 523, to John Adams on July 21, 1789
16. The Works of John Witherspoon (Edinburgh: J. Ogle, 1815), Vol. VII, p. 101, Lecture 12 on Civil Society
17. John Quincy Adams, The Jubilee of the Constitution. A Discourse Delivered at the Request of the New York Historical Society, in the City of New York on Tuesday, the 30th of April 1839; Being the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Inauguration of George Washington as President of the United States, on Thursday, the 30th of April, 1789 (New York: Samuel Colman, 1839), p. 53
18. This quote appears to be a paraphrase or a compilation of different quotes. However, reading Tytler’s view make it very believable that he could have or would have said something very similar. The concepts represented are sound.
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The Knowledge Is Power Project is brought to you by Purpose Ministries
(c) copyright 2014, Brad Sherman
Subscribe to our email list for results from the Feedom Quiz survey and other educational information.
The Knowledge Is Power Project is brought to you by Purpose Ministries
(c) copyright 2014, Brad Sherman