The Republic and Democracy: Breaking Free from Narrow Political Constructs

The concept of a republic, both in theory and practice, lacks consistency and universal clarity. Historically, from ancient Rome to modern states, the term has been applied to vastly different systems, often shaped more by cultural and political circumstances than by a coherent, stable framework. If you ask different people to define a republic, you’ll likely receive conflicting answers, revealing its fluid and subjective nature.

The dichotomy between “democracy” and “republic,” particularly as framed in U.S. political discourse, is a manipulative construct designed to confine political thinking within narrow categories. This oversimplification disregards the vast spectrum of governance models that could better address modern societal complexities.

We need a governance system that goes beyond these limiting historical labels, one that truly reflects the diverse needs, values, and identities within a society. A more inclusive and adaptable framework would prioritize genuine representation, evidence-based policymaking, and equitable participation over rigid ideological classifications.

And a quote on Democracy:

"Democracy, in its original form (ancient Athens), was insufficient and far from ideal. It favored certain groups while excluding the majority—such as the poor, foreigners, women, and slaves. Although today some poor and women can vote, its ~2500 years old ancient decision-making system still violates human rights by coercively imposing the majority’s will over minority choices. It oversimplifies the complexity of individual social needs. Democracy is upheld by a false reputation that the public is in charge, but in reality, the options are pre-set and limited. The public cannot choose which politicians will run for election; they can only vote for the pre-selected candidates, if they have the right to vote at all, and are then expected to tolerate the majority’s decision.

Neither in its original form nor its modern implementation can democracy be considered a sufficient, honorable or respected governmental system. It is outdated, oppressive, and subject to manipulation. There is absolutely nothing about democracy to be praised—it is a complete hypocrisy." …speaking from experience, Loren.

Loren,

You quoted something, but didn’t tell us where you got the quote from. Please do so.

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Why plural? All the quotes I’ve uploaded so far are mine. They might have some readability flaws, although I’ve checked them. Here you go—what’s the point? I’m pretty sure other people might have thought the same as me; I just wrote them down.

This particular quote comes from personal experience. It describes Greek democracy as it is implemented in the present—HYPOCRISY.

Sorry, but it wasn’t clear it was an original thought. I certainly got the impression you were quoting some document.

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I correct the grammar and refine them if needed using applications, as I am not well-educated. They are entirely my thoughts!

S. Hawking, who was educated, used an artificial voice generator. I am not well educated, I use an artificial refiner.

I hope this rewarded your(plural) curiosity.

i have often run into people, in debating forums, who think a democracy is distinctly different to a Reublic

Often they will say that the USA is a Republic not a Democracy and this is completely wrong. The USA is absolutely a Democracy, specifically it is a “Representative Democracy”.

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Well it’s partially wrong, as the US is both a republic and a democracy, as they’re not mutually exclusive.

republic
noun

  1. a state in which supreme power is held by the people and their elected representatives, and which has an elected or nominated president rather than a monarch.

democracy
noun

  1. a system of government by the whole population or all the eligible members of a state, typically through elected representatives.
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Agreed, and we actually lean a bit more toward the republic side, though both are indeed in play.

“While often categorized as a democracy, the United States is more accurately defined as a constitutional federal republic.“

U.S. Government - U.S. Embassy in Argentina.

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That’s kind of what I was saying.

The USA is a Constitutional Republic
The UK, by contrast, is a Constitutional Monarchy

The “Constitutional” bit means that they are both democracies.

North Korea (Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea) is a republic, it has a consitution, and even has “democratic” in the name. Thus, it must mean it is a democracy?

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It’s a democracy just because it says it’s a democracy ?

No, your criteria for a democracy needs a “higher bar”

It used to be (might still be), that in order to join he United Nations, a country had to be a democracy. Spain, under General Franco, famously declared that it was not a democracy, but a military dictatorship. Accordingly Spain was refused entry to the UN until after Franco died.
So ALL countries declare themselves to be a democracy in order to gain membership of the UN.

A democracy is a state that’s governed by democratic principles - ie: in accordance to the will of the people (at least in the long term).

eg: the USA is an obvious democracy.

I don’t think that’s true. A cursory internet search showed that to be otherwise. Can you site a source for your assertion?

Is it a democracy just because it is a “constitutional” something?

Here are the relevant definitions for “constitutional” according to Merriam-Webster:

According to this, DPRK could be classified as a constitutional <something>. Thus, democratic, according to your statement above.

Your criteria for a democracy needs a “higher bar”.

You edited out my question mark.

It was a rhetorical question. As my post went on to explain, simply declaring yourself a democracy is not enough.

A democracy is defined not by what it calls itself, but by how it operates. A “democracy” operates on democratic principles
ie: the will of the people (in the longer term anyway).

A common adage of a democracy is: “The minority get their say, but the majority get their way”.

So if a country’s constitution says that the leader is selected for life based on the physical power he can command (eg: the support of the armed forces)
And things get done in that country as per whatever the leader says

Then that country is “constitutional” ?
I think not

Constitutional”, when applied to a Republic (like the USA), or a Monarchy (like the UK), means that the country adheres to democratic principles, not just that it has a constitution.

If they follow the laws of the consitution, even if the laws are draconian or non-democratic, then yes, they are by definition constitutional. There is nothing in the definition of the word constitutional that require democracy.

The key here is the words you type yourself - when applied to countries like the USA or the UK, where the mass of laws constituting the constitution states that the countries are democratic. If the constitution does not state that the country is democratic, or even that it is non-democratic, it is still constitutional rule, in that the ruling powers rule by the constitution. It’s all in the dictionary definition of the word I showed previously.

Btw., I suspect you suffer somewhat from US defaultism here, in which you assume that the entire world works somewhat like the US. Well, I have news for you: it does not.

Edit: It struck me that you probably conflate constitutional republic and constitutional monarchy with constitutional democracy, thinking that since some constitutional republics and monarchies are democratic, then all constitutional republics/monarchies must be democratic. However, only the constitutional democratic republics/monarchies are democratic. The others are not.

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That’s not true. There was no question mark at the end of the sentence of yours that I quoted. The sentence that you wrote and I quoted is an assertion and I’d like you to site your source for it.

The constitution of a democracy does not need to state that it is a democracy - for as we have found, countries that do that, eg: the German DEMOCRATIC Republic (the old East Germany) was anything but democratic.

A country is not democratic by anything found in its constitution, but how it lives by democratic principles.
A country can have the most democratic sounding constitution ever, but if it doesn’t live by democratic principles, its written constitution just amounts to a “hill of beans”.

Btw, whilst I live in the USA, I am a Brit who studied politics in the UK.

Please don’t lie. What I said above was
It’s a democracy just because it says it’s a democracy ?

If you doubt this, go ahead and check.