Remember, democracy never lasts long. It soon wastes, exhausts, and murders itself. There never was a democracy yet that did not commit suicide. – John Adams (1814)
It's surprising how often that quote is used, and the many times it has been debated. In searching for more information on the actual quote, I came across this post that you may find very interesting, Democracy = Death that was written in 2004. The part pertaining to this quote:
WE MUST ATTACK AND DEFEAT DEMOCRACY!
That is the summation of Founder theory on the matter of democracy. Alexander Hamilton: “Our real disease - which is democracy.” John Adams: “Remember, democracy never lasts long. It soon wastes, exhausts, and murders itself. There never was a democracy yet that did not commit suicide.” Fisher Ames: “The known propensity of a democracy is to licentiousness which the ambitious call, and ignorant believe to be liberty.” Albert Gallatin: “The Bill (of Rights)…establishes some rights of the individual unalienable and which consequently, no majority has a right to deprive them of.” James Madison: “A pure democracy…can admit no cure to the mischiefs of faction.” Gouverneur Morris: “We have seen the tumult of democracies…everywhere terminated, in despotism.” John Quincy Adams: “of all human governments, democracy was the most unstable, fluctuating and short lived.” John Whitherspoon: “Democracy cannot subsist long…it is subject to the madness of popular rage.” Benjamin Rush: “A simple democracy…is one of the greatest evils.” Noah Webster: “(Democracy) is one of the most tyrannical governments on earth.”
Some might find that offensive but the reality is, the United States was not designed to be a "true" Democracy, we are a Republic. It's always always amazed me the number of people that don't realize there is a difference...
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