Early democracy, by contrast, was notably—although not fatally—vulnerable to the rise of modern states and rapid economic development. It accordingly vanished in many places, while surviving ...

THE ONCE AND FUTURE ORDER The central question of modernity has been how to reconcile capitalism and mass democracy, and since the postwar order came up with a good answer, it has managed to weather ...

We are not a pure democracy — nor should anyone want us to be. As I often say, in a pure democracy, 51 percent of the people can pee in the cornflakes of 49 percent of the people.

Columnist Gail Symons writes: "The founders used 'democracy' and 'republic' interchangeably in many contexts because they ...

Adam Gopnik reviews “Democracy Awakening: Notes on the State of America,” by Heather Cox Richardson, and “The Civic Bargain: How Democracy Survives,” by Brook Manville and Josiah Ober.

Structure and texture in modern democracy By Usman O. Abdullahi Democracy as defined by Abraham Lincoln is the government of the people, by the people and for the people.

We are not, in fact, in the middle of a decisive or apocalyptic battle between democracy and fascism. I mean it — we're not. Let's start there. Those words are at best rough approximations or ...

The Volokh Conspiracy The modern case for studying ancient Athenian democracy January 30, 2015 More than 10 years ago Summary By Ilya Somin ...

Yet Linz, a Spaniard, had closely studied his native country’s 20th-century journey from democracy to dictatorship and back again. Drawing on that history, Linz identified comparative ...

If we want modern voters to be as effective as their ancient Athenian counterparts apparently were, we should consider cutting back on the size, scope, and complexity of government.

Modeling ModernityH istorians, like economists, are rightfully wary of the phrase “It’s different this time.” The higher the stakes, the more pressing the desire to avoid past errors ...

Political scientist Josiah Ober argues that the successes of ancient Greek democracy can serve as a model for the democratic governments of today. But it may not be easy to apply ancient lessons ...