Nicholas Thompson’s Post

Authoritarian regimes are challenging democracies on multiple fronts. How can free societies safeguard their systems and retake the initiative in the comprehensive competition that has taken shape between democracies and autocracies? For insights, watch this excellent video of the recent event - "Defending Democracy in an Age of Sharp Power" - featuring Sarah Cook, Glenn Tiffert, Nadège Rolland, William J. Dobson Journal of Democracy, & Frank Langfitt https://lnkd.in/e8_xPj2U National Endowment for Democracy International Forum for Democratic Studies

At the heart of the metacrisis is a political economic crisis. So, my latest video is a summary and review of Martin Wolf's book, The Crisis of Democratic Capitalism, which argues that we need to fix, rather than abandon, these symbiotic twins that have formed the engine of our liberal societies for so long. https://lnkd.in/ez4UnJi6

Learn why everything you know about democracy and governance is wrong; the fact that no country in the world is yet a democracy; established definitions and literature, and all respected institutions, authors and theorists are and have been wrong; our understanding of separation of powers is flawed; much of history is forgotten; our politics is completely upside down; and these errors are responsible for all the troubles we face in the world, from all the endless wars to underdevelopment and economic frustrations around the world. This video barely scratches the surface of the issue. For a proper understanding of all the problems as well as more shocking facts at every turn, and, FINALLY, indisputable and revolutionary solutions – pragmatic, practical and quickly and easily implementable in any region of the world today – get the book "The Tragedy Called Democracy in the 21st Century (December, 2023)." Help make history and bring phenomenal change to society. Get the book at https://lnkd.in/dNHrqkED Read it first, discuss it, send us an email or WhatsApp us with questions or anything else! It's time for #trueDemocracy.

Distinguishing fact from fiction in today's political discourse is essential for informed decision-making and a healthy democracy. With the proliferation of misinformation and misleading narratives, it is crucial to critically evaluate the information presented to us. By fact-checking claims, verifying sources, and seeking out reliable information, we can better understand the complexities of political issues and hold our leaders accountable. Let's prioritize truth and accuracy in our discussions, promoting a more transparent and constructive political dialogue. #FactVsFiction #PoliticalDiscourse #CriticalThinking

We are loving this new piece from Danielle Allen! "Of course, we can’t have a democracy if citizens don’t want one, which brings us to the fundamental point. We have to reverse this dynamic of disaffection...The real test of health for a democracy is not whether a large majority of us can agree on this or that policy, or this or that candidate, but whether it is possible to forge a cross-ideological supermajority in support of the core norms of constitutional democracy. That is our single most important task, and every one of us can contribute simply by signing up." Read this piece here: https://lnkd.in/e4Nc8SFJ

My new article published in the Journal of Deliberative Democracy:  https://lnkd.in/ehfycTS7 In this article I use 4 case studies to highlight the strengths and weaknesses of public hearings, evaluate how effectively they can be coupled with other democratic institutions, and consider where there are best placed to contribute to a deliberative democratic policy-making process. I also introduce a comparative framework, the Democratic Standard Enactment Index, which offers a systematic way to analyse public hearing’s capacity to enact core democratic norms inclusiveness, popular control, transparency and considered judgement (Smith 2009).

Pundits, bureaucrats and politicians are barking about destroying democracy. Well, I support the destroying of democracy as I detail in this weeks program. Do you want a Constitutional Republic or the democracy of the CCP / CPUSA / corporatists and politics-bureaucratic oligarchs? https://bit.ly/3NJlQ9K

Alex Johnson's new piece, "The Erosion of Democracy: Examining the Decline of Democratic Values in the United States," is now up on our website. Read this semester's fifth editorial piece here: https://lnkd.in/evNP5Tup

Now available, Richard Tuck's Active and Passive Citizens is a powerful case for why majority rule—not representation—is the defining feature of democratic politics. The idea that democratic governance rests on active self-rule by citizens plays surprisingly little part in current theories of democracy, which instead stress the importance of representation by elected, appointed, or randomly selected bodies such as legislatures, courts, and juries. This would have astonished eighteenth-century theorists of democracy, who viewed universal suffrage and majoritarian voting as the sole criteria for democratic politics. Active and Passive Citizens defends the view of these earlier thinkers, asserting that individual agency is the very essence of democracy. Learn more about this powerful book: https://hubs.ly/Q02vn_d20