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Pure Democracy
Definition
A democratic government is one that is governed by a representative body that has elected representatives who vote on the behalf of their respective constituents. A pure democracy however, is conducted by the citizens themselves who vote upon the issues directly without the need of representation by others.
Structure
The structure of a pure democracy consists of two basic parts: the President and the citizens of the country. Voting by the public will be conducted every month to pass legislation though an emergency vote may be made by the President whenever necessary (e.g., declaration of war).
Since a pure democracy places all of the legislative power in the hands of the people, the role of the President would become more of a figurehead for the country. Due to authoritative power being stripped from the position, the primary responsibility of the President will be to decide which issues should be placed on
the monthly ballot regarding their scheduling and timely ratification.
In a pure democracy, the departmental heads become advisers to the nation and will provide a monthly status of their activities to the general public. They are responsible for providing information regarding budgets, project schedules, and tentative plans for upcoming months. If an issue occurs (e.g., cost overruns), the nation will decide if additional funding should be granted or whether the program should end.
Since Tuesday is a workday for most people, perhaps the best day of conducting the public vote would be the first Saturday of every month. Rather than paper ballots, it may be more convenient for the nation to vote electronically through their local cable/satellite T.V. service, while in the comfort of their own home.
The Department of Education will be responsible for presenting the monthly issues in a clear and concise manner for the public to review. By having the Education Department handle this important responsibility, the pros and cons of a particular issue will be presented at the education level of the general population, and not be swayed by the particular presentation or bias of the media.
Advantages
A major advantage of a pure democracy is that it will achieve a higher degree of satisfaction among the people of a nation. The accuracy of public opinion on various issues will improve since a more direct manner of governing the nation will be provided rather than being handled by the "middle man" of past representatives.
Another advantage of a pure democracy is that it also provides greater impartiality due to the lack of a representative being coerced by a biased influence of some kind (e.g., a politician's personal opinion, gifts from special interest groups, etc.). By eliminating political corruption in this manner, a pure democracy is inherently more trustworthy and reliable than a representative form of government.
A pure democracy also eliminates the possibility of "pork" being added to legislation that lawmakers have made in the past for their own personal self-interest. Also, laws will become more simpler in nature since the proposed legislation will be written for the general public in mind, so bills will be less complex and easier to understand (with fewer loopholes).
A very important and distinct advantage of a pure democracy is that it has the possibility of preventing unnecessary war between nations. For example, America's involvement in Korea, Vietnam, and Iraq was
not reflective of public opinion at the time and could have been prevented if the entire nation voted upon the matter. Even a major event involving multiple nations such as World War II could have been prevented if the nation of Germany was a pure democracy and its citizens were allowed to vote upon the matter.
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