2009-05-08

Lost Political Words Rediscovered

These days some people charge America is an oligarchy. But the thinking of their nation being ruled by a secretive or unprincipled elite is not new. In the 19th century, the term was kakistocracy.

The American poet James Russell Lowell wrote in a letter in 1876 (from 'Weird Words' of all places):

What fills me with doubt and dismay is the degradation of the moral tone. Is it or is it not a result of democracy? Is ours a “government of the people, by the people, for the people,” or a Kakistocracy, rather for the benefit of knaves at the cost of fools?

Plus ca change...


Posted by T.C.

2 comments:

  1. Paul Costopoulos5/09/2009

    All those guys would not be there if we did not keep electing them.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Man of Roma5/12/2009

    I think that people can vote well when they have enough instruction, since the level of subtle manipulation can be immense. One of the problems of democracy since its beginning has been that of a sufficient education of the people. If the people are not educated enough they are easily manipulated by intelligent knaves. It reminds me something happening here ...
    Kakistocracy, the term is interesting but cacophonic. No wonder demagogia, populismo etc. had more success, although not identical in their meaning.

    ReplyDelete

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