Transparency and Journalism: Key Pieces of Democracy

Democracy, as defined by the Oxford English Dictionary: “a system of government in which all the people of a state or polity…are involved in making decisions about its affairs, typically by voting to elect representatives to a parliament or similar assembly…”

Democracy, one of the most romantic political notions in existence. This fanciful idea that the people of a country can participate and be properly represented by their political institutions. There are many democratic governments throughout the modern world, but many of them are missing two key pieces for a truly representative government: transparency in the motivations and decision-making of government officials as well as accurate and honest journalism. Journalism is key to informing people on the government’s operations and is one of the primary tools of the population to keep the government and elected officials honest. Transparency is essential because the people must know what they are actually voting for and not just be force fed the propaganda most political campaigns run on today.

In order for a democracy to truly serve the people, journalistic standards must be raised in order to maintain the government’s integrity. By critically and honestly reporting on government officials and their actions, journalists can be a driving force behind democracy by keeping the population informed and ensuring that government officials operate with the awareness that their policies will be put under the spotlight. Unfortunately, the demise of journalism is one of the many factors contributing to the decay of our democracy. Media has become a key cog in the establishment apparatus; its role being to misinform and distract the population over government policies and decisions. By ensuring that the majority of the population has been robbed of easily accessible information, the media can assist in manipulating the vote of millions of people.

If journalism is to have the ability to inform the people, a certain level of transparency must be established in the government. Without transparency, the information is unavailable for either journalists or the people to inform themselves on government operations. Along with the deterioration of journalistic standards, the beginning of the 21st century has witnessed the dramatic decrease of transparency within government institutions, at least in the United States. This is not to say that the entire government hides behind a veil of sinister secrecy. Bills are available for the people to peruse and the votes for or against these bills are also available. However, the motivations and the ‘behind-the-scenes’ politics of whom finances the legislators pushing for those actions are pretty well shrouded. Behind-the-scenes politics have always existed and are natural to a democratic system in which negotiations and compromises must be reached, but there must be some sort of peep-hole through which the people can have some idea of the deals in government.

Transparency and journalism are key factors to democracy that allow the people to remain informed and keep the government in check. In order for a democratic form of government to truly serve its constituents, the people must have the means with which to monitor the government. Along with developments in campaign finance, the decline of journalism and transparency in government has led to the majority of the population being easily manipulated. This has ensured that the people are separated from actual policy-making decisions while also transforming campaigns into soap operas instead of chances for discussion over policies and their possible effects. Without those two pillars, a government of the people, by the people, for the people is a virtual impossibility.

Nevada’s (Un)Democratic Convention

The 2016 presidential primaries have been the most memorable in years; their problems have come under intense scrutiny as two anti-establishment candidates wage a political war on their respective parties. The throngs of Bernie and Trump supporters have seen their candidates struggle against antiquated and autocratic party machinations to differing degrees of success. The schemes of the Democratic elite to acquire the nomination for Hillary regardless of people’s voices reached a new low at the Nevada Democratic Convention. Following high-profile incidents such as the Arizona primaries and the purging of thousands of Brooklyn voters, the Democratic establishment continues to trample the voices of its members with impunity; like a donkey oblivious to the hundreds of flies flitting across its body.

The exact narrative of the Convention is confusing and difficult to follow thanks to the fact that most media is either blacking out the injustices or spinning the story to place the blame on people outraged at the obvious suppression of their voices. What can be gleaned from the litany of social media posts(unreliable sources) and videos(perhaps more reliable sources) is that the Nevada Democratic Party took several actions to ensure that Hillary walked away with as many delegates as possible. Such measures included, but are not limited to, the ejection of 64 delegates for not having “the proper credentials” and ignoring motions for a recount(which is illegal; a motion cannot be ignored). This disaster of a convention culminated in the Nevada Democratic Party Chair leaping up on stage, passing several motions while disregarding the objections and fleeing from the scene of the crime. Police then arrive and everyone is told to leave or risk arrest.

Another tool that has disproportionally aided Hillary Clinton in this primary campaign has been the use of closed primaries or caucuses. Despite disagreeing with it, I can see the constitutional argument for closed primaries. However, the events of the Convention are an absolute disgrace. Rather than continue to use ‘legal’ methods to suppress voters, the Democratic Party has resorted to openly trampling on the idea of a democratic process. On Saturday, hundreds of voices were silenced to ensure that the party candidate won; so long as We the People allow such political atrocities to be openly committed without retribution, the system will continue suppressing people and destroying any last vestiges of democracy.

The notion of a democratic process in the United States is a fantasy, but to witness such blatant tampering of the process is in equal parts chilling and demotivating. The events of the Nevada Democratic Convention show that in our modern ‘republic’, the people are simply bystanders to the political process run by wealthy backers. Disregarding the Bernie vs Hillary narrative involved here, this was an injustice committed against citizens who were simply trying to participate in the political process. Regardless of your party or candidate affiliation, you ignore what happened at the Convention at your own risk.

First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Socialist.

Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.

Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Jew.

Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me

 

 

 

The Four Pillars of American Politics: Fear, Ignorance, Bigotry, and Smear

“Yet to displace it with a Republican regime embracing a philosophy that lacks political integrity or intellectual honesty would prove equally disastrous to this nation. The nation sorely needs a Republican victory.But I don’t want to see the Republican party ride to political victory on the Four Horsemen of Calumny — Fear, Ignorance, Bigotry, and Smear.

I doubt if the Republican Party could – simply because I don’t believe the American people will uphold any political party that puts political exploitation above national interest.”

-Senator Margaret Chase Smith, Declaration of Conscience 1950

The Declaration of Conscience was a reply to the repressive climate of the Red Scare and McCarthyism which, according to Senator Smith, threatened the four basic principles of Americanism: the right to criticize; the right to hold unpopular beliefs; the right to protest; the right of independent thought. The speech fell on deaf ears as that same year marked the outbreak of the Korean War. Her warnings continue to fall on deaf ears; Senator Smith unwittingly summarized how modern American, particularly Republican, politics function. A demagogue running a presidential campaign under the banners of the Four Horsemen threatens to take the whole race. Meanwhile, the hysteria and irrational fear of Muslims bears many similarities to the climate of hysteria Senator Smith found herself in.

Though the fear of Islam has not assumed an institutional form which was the core of McCarthyism, the paranoias and hatred which drove McCarthyism are clearly gaining traction in a large portion of the population. Nowhere is this more evident than Donald Trump’s successful Republican primary campaign in which he managed to trample eleven competitors on his way to the Republican nomination. At many times, the Republican party has actively tried to hinder Trump’s campaign; showing that his campaign is a populist movement opposed by the established party apparatus. His calls for banning Muslims entry into the US were met with opposition by a majority of the population but struck a chord with some voters and signaled his intent to play on people’s fear of terrorism, particularly groups such as ISIS.

Trump’s entire campaign seems to be based on the Four Horsemen of Modern American Politics. He has played on people’s Fear. This includes fear of Islamic terrorists as well as Mexican immigrants. His manipulation of Fear is driven by his understanding and participation in people’s Ignorance. Rather than recognizing that the entire Islamic religion is not inherently violent or dangerous, they allow themselves to be drawn into irrational hatred of a group of people different from themselves. Rather than recognizing that immigrants, particularly from Mexico, are vital to our economy, they choose to accuse these ‘invaders’ of stealing their god-given jobs, etc. These two factors drive the Third Horseman forward: Bigotry. Trump’s campaign and it’s supporters have been very successful by attacking anyone with differing views; the list includes Hillary Clinton, Islam, Hispanics, and Black Lives Matter. This leads us to the last Horseman, Smear. Where to start? You could start with his branding of rivals as Lying Ted and Crooked Hillary. In fact, feel free to browse through a list of 210 things Trump has insulted on Twitter; that doesn’t include all of his smear tactics in speeches, just Twitter.

Yet, Trump’s campaign doesn’t significantly alter the general strategy of modern political campaigns, he has just taken it further than others have previously been willing to go(and has clearly benefitted from it). Consider that Trump’s main rival for the Republican nomination, Ted Cruz, was stating he would ‘carpet bomb ISIS into oblivion’. A policy statement which clearly is not possible and only serves to play on people’s fear of Islamic terrorist groups. Then there is the seemingly endless smear campaign that President Obama is, at the end of an eight-year tenure, still grappling with. Fear, Ignorance, Bigotry, and Smear have become mainstays in American politics; Donald Trump has simply taken them to an entirely new level in order to combat an established hierarchy.

In 1950, Senator Smith proclaimed that campaigns built around the Four Horsemen would never prosper in the United States due to the American people refusing to tolerate political exploitation over national interests. Yet, US politicians have increasingly used them as a crux on which to run elections. This pattern has reached its apex in the 2016 Republican primaries, with candidates discussing the size of each other’s sexual organs over foreign policy issues and the widening financial gap between the haves and the have-nots. It is now too late to change the political campaign culture to prevent a demagogue gaining traction; but even if he doesn’t win the general election in November, Trump is a warning that the government and the people cannot afford to ignore. Ignore the root causes of Trump’s success and we may one day find ourselves under fascist rule.

 

 

 

Open Letter to the Anti-CU Movement

“It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us – that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion – that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain – that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom – and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”

Abraham Lincoln, Gettysburg Address 1863

Citizens United. Possibly one of the most catastrophic Supreme Court decisions in recent history; it has removed any lingering form of restraint on corporations’ ability to influence politics to a greater degree than most citizens. It has rapidly accelerated the demise of our already decaying democratic institutions. The first step that must be taken by We the People to reclaim our democracy must be to reverse this decision. Though corporations already held great sway in Washington before Citizens United, the decision has drastically increased their hold on politics. The only viable way to reverse Citizens United is by passing a Constitutional Amendment fundamentally altering how campaigns are financed and restricting corporate personhood.

Since the Citizens United decision, several movements and PACs have sprung up across the United States to push for such a Constitutional Amendment. Groups such as Wolf-PAC, Move to Amend, the Coffee Party, etc. This array of groups has been created and fuelled by We the People, citizens like you and I who wish to see government truly represent the people rather than the elite and their corporations. Initially, it was the best course of action to have several separate groups who could attract strong bases of local support across different areas of the United States. However, we have now reached a point where these groups will potentially be competing with each other to attract more volunteers. Now is the time for these groups to united under one banner and use their combined force to initiate a massive push for an Amendment.

“If our people fight one tribe at a time, all will be killed. They can cut off our fingers one by one, but if we join together we will make a powerful fist.”

-Sitting Bull

Though they may have different tactics, differing ideas on what should be the wording of the Amendment, and even different political allegiances, these groups must unite under one banner to ensure the success of their movement. Countless times there have been well-intentioned movements which have failed to achieve their goals due to infighting and the eternal search for glory that some revolutionaries are consumed by. Set your differences and ideas of historical acclaim aside and band together to ensure that your movement succeeds. Eighty years from now, when our children and their children look back on this push to restore democracy, will it be a story of different groups setting aside their differences for the greater good; or will it be the tragic story of infighting and an ultimately doomed and fractured movement?

On Autocratic Political Parties

“…in the place of the delegated will of the nation the will of a party, often a small but artful and enterprising minority of the community; and, according to the alternate triumphs of different parties, to make the public administration the mirror of the ill-concerted and incongruous projects of faction, rather than the organ of consistent and wholesome plans digested by common councils and modified by mutual interests.”

-Washington’s Farewell Address, 1796

In 1796, George Washington unwittingly predicted how our entire political system would be shaped. This prediction came when he was warning the people of the dangers of domestic factions and their potential influence in government. These comments came to light after a tenure that was partially defined by vehement infighting between Hamiltonian Federalists and Jeffersonian Republicans. In the 220 years since then, the modern Democratic and Republican parties have formed and come to define our political system and how people relate to it. Washington’s fears of parties prioritizing their interests over the people’s has manifested in previously unimaginable degrees. Political parties, along with corporate influence, are now one of the greatest obstacles we face in reclaiming any form of true representation.

In democratic forms of government, it’s perfectly natural for people to gravitate to groups of like-minded individuals to pursue political agendas. It’s part of our Bill of Rights: freedom of association. However, the population needs to view these parties as independent entities that are seeking to further their own aims, which may or may not coincide with the people’s interests. When the lines are blurred between political parties and government, parties are able to dictate how the government functions. The government which is meant to be an impartial mouthpiece for the people then becomes an organ designed to keep these parties in power and prevent new parties or political views from establishing themselves in government matters. Parties are an organic piece of democracy, but great measures should be taken to prevent them from hijacking the government intended for the people.

One does not have to look further than the parties’ presidential primaries to see that they are actively ensuring that only the entrenched party elite have influence on party proceedings. The current presidential primaries are an excellent example to examine considering they both star an anti-establishment candidate fighting against party forces to gain the nomination. On the Democrat side, you have the most devious and undemocratic form of fighting grassroots movements: superdelegates. Superdelegates are delegates that are not subject to the popular opinion of their assigned state. Historically they have voted with the popular opinion(considering it would be disastrous PR to sway a primary away from the popular vote) but they are a tool designed to ensure that popular movements that go against party interests are quelled. The Chair of the DNC(Democratic National Committee) calmly admitted as much: “Unpledged delegates exist really to make sure that party leaders and elected officials don’t have to be in a position where they are running against grassroots activists.”

The desire for the party to pursue its own interests is completely natural; they are, after all, their own independent organizations. However, the US election system hinders the development of new parties that seek to break the political hegemony of the Democrats and Republicans. This prevents many views from being represented in government and, so long as the parties try to reduce influence from non-members in their primaries, leaves many voters estranged. The US needs to move to away from the winner-takes-all voting system we currently have to promote the growth of new parties and allow for more people’s interests to be represented in government decisions. Independent voters now account for 39% of registered voters; we need to reform our system to ensure that those people have a say in how they are governed.

Though political parties are a natural conduit for people in democratic governments, the political duopoly in America is an impediment to the people’s interests and must be overthrown. Drastic voting reformation is needed if an ever-increasing block of estranged voters is going to be given their due right of representation.