China Democracy

Democracy Insight

Democracy is a form of government in which all citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Ideally, this includes equal (and more or less direct) participation in the proposal, development and passage of legislation into law. It can also encompass social, economic and cultural conditions that enable the free and equal practice of political self-determination. The term comes from the Greek: δημοκρατία – (dēmokratía) “rule of the people”,[1] which was coined from δῆμος (dêmos) “people” and κράτος (Kratos) “power”, in the middle of the 5th-4th century BC to denote the political systems then existing in some Greek city-states, notably Athens following a popular uprising in 508 BC.[2]

According to some theories of democracy, popular sovereignty is the founding principle of such a system.[3] However, the democratic principle has also been expressed as “the freedom to call something into being which did not exist before, which was not given… and which therefore, strictly speaking, could not be known.”[4] This type of freedom, which is connected to human “natality,” or the capacity to begin anew, sees democracy as “not only a political system… [but] an ideal, an aspiration, really, intimately connected to and dependent upon a picture of what it is to be human—of what it is a human should be to be fully human.”[5]

While there is no specific, universally accepted definition of ‘democracy’,[6] equality and freedom have both been identified as important characteristics of democracy since ancient times.[7] These principles are reflected in all citizens being equal before the law and having equal access to legislative processes. For example, in a representative democracy, every vote has equal weight, no unreasonable restrictions can apply to anyone seeking to become a representative, and the freedom of its citizens is secured by legitimized rights and liberties which are generally protected by a constitution.[8][9]

There are several varieties of democracy, some of which provide better representation and more freedom for their citizens than others.[10][11] However, if any democracy is not structured so as to prohibit the government from excluding the people from the legislative process, or any branch of government from altering the separation of powers in its own favor, then a branch of the system can accumulate too much power and destroy the democracy.[12][13][14] Representative Democracy, Consensus Democracy, and Deliberative Democracy are all major examples of attempts at a form of government that is both practical and responsive to the needs and desires of citizens.

Many people use the term “democracy” as shorthand for liberal democracy, which may include elements such as political pluralism; equality before the law; the right to petition elected officials for redress of grievances; due process; civil liberties; human rights; and elements of civil society outside the government. In the United States, separation of powers is often cited as a central attribute, but in other countries, such as the United Kingdom, the dominant principle is that of parliamentary sovereignty (though in practice judicial independence is generally maintained). In other cases, “democracy” is used to mean direct democracy. Though the term “democracy” is typically used in the context of a political state, the principles are applicable to private organizations and other groups as well.

Majority rule is often listed as a characteristic of democracy. However, it is also possible for a minority to be oppressed by a “tyranny of the majority” in the absence of governmental or constitutional protections of individual and/or group rights. An essential part of an “ideal” representative democracy is competitive elections that are fair both substantively[15] and procedurally.[16] Furthermore, freedom of political expression, freedom of speech, and freedom of the press are considered to be essential, so that citizens are adequately informed and able to vote according to their own best interests as they see them.[17][18] It has also been suggested that a basic feature of democracy is the capacity of individuals to participate freely and fully in the life of their society.[19]

Democracy has its formal origins in Ancient Greece,[20][21] but democratic practices are evident in earlier societies including Mesopotamia, Phoenicia and India.[22] Other cultures since Greece have significantly contributed to the evolution of democracy such as Ancient Rome,[20] Europe,[20] and North and South America.[23] The concept of representative democracy arose largely from ideas and institutions that developed during the European Middle Ages and the Age of Enlightenment and in the American and French Revolutions.[24] Democracy has been called the “last form of government” and has spread considerably across the globe.[25] The right to vote has been expanded in many jurisdictions over time from relatively narrow groups (such as wealthy men of a particular ethnic group), with New Zealand the first nation to grant universal suffrage for all its citizens in 1893.

History of democracy

Main article: History of democracy

[] Ancient origins

The term democracy first appeared in ancient Greek political and philosophical thought. The philosopher Plato contrasted democracy, the system of “rule by the governed”, with the alternative systems of monarchy (rule by one individual), oligarchy (rule by a small élite class) and timocracy (ruling class of property owners).[26] Although Athenian democracy is today considered by many to have been a form of direct democracy, originally it had two distinguishing features: first the allotment (selection by lot) of ordinary citizens to government offices and courts,[27] and secondarily the assembly of all the citizens.[28]

All citizens were eligible to speak and vote in the Assembly, which set the laws of the city-state. However, the Athenian citizenship was only for males born from a father who was citizen and who had been doing their “military service” between 18 and 20 years old; this excluded women, slaves, foreigners (μέτοικοι / metoikoi) and males under 20 years old. Of the 250,000 inhabitants only some 30,000 on average were citizens. Of those 30,000 perhaps 5,000 might regularly attend one or more meetings of the popular Assembly. Most of the officers and magistrates of Athenian government were allotted; only the generals (strategoi) and a few other officers were elected.[2]

A possible example of primitive democracy may have been the early Sumerian city-states.[29] A similar proto-democracy or oligarchy existed temporarily among the Medes (ancient Iranian people) in the 6th century BC, but which came to an end after the Achaemenid (Persian) Emperor Darius the Great declared that the best monarchy was better than the best oligarchy or best democracy.[30]

A serious claim for early democratic institutions comes from the independent “republics” of India, sanghas and ganas, which existed as early as the 6th century BC and persisted in some areas until the 4th century AD.[31] The evidence is scattered and no pure historical source exists for that period. In addition, Diodorus (a Greek historian at the time of Alexander the Great’s excursion of India), without offering any detail, mentions that independent and democratic states existed in India.[32] However, modern scholars note that the word democracy at the 3rd century BC and later had been degraded and could mean any autonomous state no matter how oligarchic it was.[33][34] The lack of the concept of citizen equality across caste system boundaries lead many scholars to believe that the true nature of ganas and sanghas would not be comparable to that of truly democratic institutions.[35]

Even though the Roman Republic contributed significantly to certain aspects of democracy, only a minority of Romans were citizens. As such, having votes in elections for choosing representatives and then the votes of the powerful were given more weight through a system of Gerrymandering. For that reason, almost all high officials, including members of the Senate, came from a few wealthy and noble families.[36] However, many notable exceptions did occur.

[] Middle Ages

During the Middle Ages, there were various systems involving elections or assemblies, although often only involving a small amount of the population, the election of Gopala in Bengal, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, the Althing in Iceland, the Løgting in the Faroe Islands, certain medieval Italian city-states such as Venice, the tuatha system in early medieval Ireland, the Veche in Novgorod and Pskov Republics of medieval Russia, Scandinavian Things, The States in Tirol and Switzerland and the autonomous merchant city of Sakai in the 16th century in Japan. However, participation was often restricted to a minority, and so may be better classified as oligarchy. Most regions in medieval Europe were ruled by clergy or feudal lords.

A little closer to modern democracy were the Cossack republics of Ukraine in the 16th–17th centuries: Cossack Hetmanate and Zaporizhian Sich. The highest post – the Hetman – was elected by the representatives from the country’s districts. Because these states were very militarised, the right to participate in Hetman’s elections was largely restricted to those who served in the Cossack Army and over time was curtailed effectively limiting these rights to higher army ranks.

Magna Carta, 1215, England

The Parliament of England had its roots in the restrictions on the power of kings written into Magna Carta, explicitly protected certain rights of the King’s subjects, whether free or fettered — and implicitly supported what became English writ of habeas corpus, safeguarding individual freedom against unlawful imprisonment with right to appeal. The first elected parliament was De Montfort’s Parliament in England in 1265.

However only a small minority actually had a voice; Parliament was elected by only a few percent of the population, (less than 3% as late as 1780[37]), and the power to call parliament was at the pleasure of the monarch (usually when he or she needed funds). The power of Parliament increased in stages over the succeeding centuries. After the Glorious Revolution of 1688, the English Bill of Rights of 1689 was enacted, which codified certain rights and increased the influence of Parliament.[37] The franchise was slowly increased and Parliament gradually gained more power until the monarch became largely a figurehead.[38] As the franchise was increased, it also was made more uniform, as many so-called rotten boroughs, with a handful of voters electing a Member of Parliament, were eliminated in the Reform Act of 1832.

Democracy was also seen to a certain extent in bands and tribes such as the Iroquois Confederacy. However, in the Iroquois Confederacy only the males of certain clans could be leaders and some clans were excluded. Only the oldest females from the same clans could choose and remove the leaders. This excluded most of the population. An interesting detail is that there should be consensus among the leaders, not majority support decided by voting, when making decisions.[39][40]

Band societies, such as the Bushmen, which usually number 20-50 people in the band often do not have leaders and make decisions based on consensus among the majority. In Melanesia, farming village communities have traditionally been egalitarian and lacking in a rigid, authoritarian hierarchy. Although a “Big man” or “Big woman” could gain influence, that influence was conditional on a continued demonstration of leadership skills, and on the willingness of the community. Every person was expected to share in communal duties, and entitled to participate in communal decisions. However, strong social pressure encouraged conformity and discouraged individualism.[41]

[] 18th and 19th centuries

Number of nations 1800–2003 scoring 8 or higher on Polity IV scale, another widely used measure of democracy.

Although not described as a democracy by the founding fathers, the United States founders shared a determination to root the American experiment in the principle of natural freedom and equality. [42] The United States Constitution, adopted in 1788, provided for an elected government and protected civil rights and liberties for some.

In the colonial period before 1776, and for some time after, only adult white male property owners could vote; enslaved Africans, free black people and women were not extended the franchise. On the American frontier, democracy became a way of life, with widespread social, economic and political equality.[43] However, slavery was a social and economic institution, particularly in eleven states in the American South, that a variety of organizations were established advocating the movement of black people from the United States to locations where they would enjoy greater freedom and equality.[44]

During the 1820s and 1830s the American Colonization Society (A.C.S.) was the primary vehicle for proposals to return black Americans to freedom in Africa, and in 1821 the A.C.S. established the colony of Liberia, assisting thousands of former African-American slaves and free black people to move there from the United States.[44] By the 1840s almost all property restrictions were ended and nearly all white adult male citizens could vote; and turnout averaged 60–80% in frequent elections for local, state and national officials. The system gradually evolved, from Jeffersonian Democracy to Jacksonian Democracy and beyond. In the 1860 United States Census the slave population in the United States had grown to four million,[45] and in Reconstruction after the Civil War (late 1860s) the newly freed slaves became citizens with (in the case of men) a nominal right to vote. Full enfranchisement of citizens was not secured until after the African-American Civil Rights Movement (1955–1968) gained passage by the United States Congress of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

The establishment of universal male suffrage in France in 1848 was an important milestone in the history of democracy.

In 1789, Revolutionary France adopted the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen and, although short-lived, the National Convention was elected by all males in 1792.[46] Universal male suffrage was definitely established in France in March 1848 in the wake of the French Revolution of 1848.[47] In 1848, several revolutions broke out in Europe as rulers were confronted with popular demands for liberal constitutions and more democratic government.[48]

The Australian colonies became democratic during the mid-19th century, with South Australia being the first government in the world to introduce women’s suffrage in 1861. (It was argued that as women would vote the same as their husbands, this essentially gave married men two votes, which was not unreasonable.)

New Zealand granted suffrage to (native) Māori men in 1867, white men in 1879, and women in 1893, thus becoming the first major nation to achieve universal suffrage. However, women were not eligible to stand for parliament until 1919.

Liberal democracies were few and often short-lived before the late 19th century, and various nations and territories have also claimed to be the first with universal suffrage.

[] 20th and 21st centuries

20th century transitions to liberal democracy have come in successive “waves of democracy,” variously resulting from wars, revolutions, decolonization, religious and economic circumstances. World War I and the dissolution of the Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian empires resulted in the creation of new nation-states from Europe, most of them at least nominally democratic.

In the 1920s democracy flourished, but the Great Depression brought disenchantment, and most of the countries of Europe, Latin America, and Asia turned to strong-man rule or dictatorships. Fascism and dictatorships flourished in Nazi Germany, Italy, Spain and Portugal, as well as nondemocratic regimes in the Baltics, the Balkans, Brazil, Cuba, China, and Japan, among others.[49]

World War II brought a definitive reversal of this trend in western Europe. The successful democratization of the American, British, and French sectors of occupied Germany (disputed[50]), Austria, Italy, and the occupied Japan served as a model for the later theory of regime change.

However, most of Eastern Europe, including the Soviet sector of Germany was forced into the non-democratic Soviet bloc. The war was followed by decolonization, and again most of the new independent states had nominally democratic constitutions. India emerged as the world’s largest democracy and continues to be so.[51]

By 1960, the vast majority of country-states were nominally democracies, although the majority of the world’s populations lived in nations that experienced sham elections, and other forms of subterfuge (particularly in Communist nations and the former colonies.)

This graph shows Freedom House’s evaluation of the number of nations in the different categories given above for the period for which there are surveys, 1972–2005

A subsequent wave of democratization brought substantial gains toward true liberal democracy for many nations. Spain, Portugal (1974), and several of the military dictatorships in South America returned to civilian rule in the late 1970s and early 1980s (Argentina in 1983, Bolivia, Uruguay in 1984, Brazil in 1985, and Chile in the early 1990s). This was followed by nations in East and South Asia by the mid-to-late 1980s.

Economic malaise in the 1980s, along with resentment of communist oppression, contributed to the collapse of the Soviet Union, the associated end of the Cold War, and the democratization and liberalization of the former Eastern bloc countries. The most successful of the new democracies were those geographically and culturally closest to western Europe, and they are now members or candidate members of the European Union[citation needed] . Some researchers consider that in contemporary Russia there is no real democracy and one of forms of dictatorship takes place.[52]

The Economist Intelligence Unit’s Democracy Index as published in December 2010. The palest blue countries get a score above 9 out of 10 (with Norway being the most democratic country at 9.80), while the black countries score below 3 (with North Korea being the least democratic at 1.08).

The liberal trend spread to some nations in Africa in the 1990s, most prominently in South Africa. Some recent examples of attempts of liberalization include the Indonesian Revolution of 1998, the Bulldozer Revolution in Yugoslavia, the Rose Revolution in Georgia, the Orange Revolution in Ukraine, the Cedar Revolution in Lebanon, the Tulip Revolution in Kyrgyzstan, and the Jasmine Revolution in Tunisia.

According to Freedom House, in 2007 there were 123 electoral democracies (up from 40 in 1972).[53] According to World Forum on Democracy, electoral democracies now represent 120 of the 192 existing countries and constitute 58.2 percent of the world’s population. At the same time liberal democracies i.e. countries Freedom House regards as free and respectful of basic human rights and the rule of law are 85 in number and represent 38 percent of the global population.[54]

As such, it has been speculated that this trend may continue in the future to the point where liberal democratic nation-states become the universal standard form of human society. This prediction forms the core of Francis Fukayama’s “End of History” controversial theory. These theories are criticized by those who fear an evolution of liberal democracies to post-democracy, and others who point out the high number of illiberal democracies.

[] Forms

Main articles: Varieties of democracy and List of types of democracy

Democracy has taken a number of forms, both in theory and practice. The following kinds are not exclusive of one another: many specify details of aspects that are independent of one another and can co-exist in a single system.

Political ratings of countries according to Freedom House’s Freedom in the World survey, 2009:

Free

Partly Free

Not Free

Countries highlighted in blue are designated “electoral democracies” in Freedom House’s 2010 survey Freedom in the World

[] Representative

Main article: Representative democracy

Representative democracy involves the selection of government officials by the people being represented. If the head of state is also democratically elected then it is called a democratic republic.[55] The most common mechanisms involve election of the candidate with a majority or a plurality of the votes.

Representatives may be elected or become diplomatic representatives by a particular district (or constituency), or represent the entire electorate proportionally proportional systems, with some using a combination of the two. Some representative democracies also incorporate elements of direct democracy, such as referendums. A characteristic of representative democracy is that while the representatives are elected by the people to act in their interest, they retain the freedom to exercise their own judgment as how best to do so.

[] Parliamentary

Main article: Parliamentary system

Parliamentary democracy is a representative democracy where government is appointed by parliamentary representatives as opposed to a ‘presidential rule’ wherein the President is both head of state and the head of government and is elected by the voters. Under a parliamentary democracy, government is exercised by delegation to an executive ministry and subject to ongoing review, checks and balances by the legislative parliament elected by the people.[56][57][58][59][60][61][62][63]

[] Liberal

A Liberal democracy is a representative democracy in which the ability of the elected representatives to exercise decision-making power is subject to the rule of law, and usually moderated by a constitution that emphasizes the protection of the rights and freedoms of individuals, and which places constraints on the leaders and on the extent to which the will of the majority can be exercised against the rights of minorities (see civil liberties). In a liberal democracy, it is possible for some large-scale decisions to emerge from the many individual decisions that citizens are free to make. In other words, citizens can “vote with their feet” or “vote with their dollars”, resulting in significant informal government-by-the-masses that exercises many “powers” associated with formal government elsewhere.

[] Constitutional

See: Constitutional democracy

[] Direct

Main article: Direct democracy

Direct democracy is a political system where the citizens participate in the decision-making personally, contrary to relying on intermediaries or representatives. The supporters of direct democracy argue that democracy is more than merely a procedural issue. A direct democracy gives the voting population the power to:

1. Change constitutional laws,
2. Put forth initiatives, referendums and suggestions for laws,
3. Give binding orders to elective officials, such as revoking them before the end of their elected term, or initiating a lawsuit for breaking a campaign promise.

Of the three measures mentioned, most operate in developed democracies today. This is part of a gradual shift towards direct democracies. Examples of this include the extensive use of referendums in California with more than 20 million voters, and (i.e., voting).[64] in Switzerland, where five million voters decide on national referendums and initiatives two to four times a year; direct democratic instruments are also well established at the cantonal and communal level. Vermont towns have been known for their yearly town meetings, held every March to decide on local issues. No direct democracy is in existence outside the framework of a different overarching form of government. Most direct democracies to date have been weak forms, relatively small communities, usually city-states. The world is yet to see a large, fundamental, working example of direct democracy as of yet, with most examples being small and weak forms.

See: List of direct democracy parties

[] Inclusive democracy

Main article: Inclusive Democracy

Inclusive democracy is a political theory and political project that aims for direct democracy in all fields of social life: political democracy in the form of face-to-face assemblies which are confederated, economic democracy in a stateless, moneyless and marketless economy, democracy in the social realm, i.e.self-management in places of work and education, and ecological democracy which aims to reintegrate society and nature. The theoretical project of inclusive democracy emerged from the work of political philosopher Takis Fotopoulos in “Towards An Inclusive Democracy” and was further developed in the journal Democracy & Nature’ and its successor The International Journal of Inclusive Democracy.

The basic unit of decision making in an inclusive democracy is the demotic assembly, i.e. the assembly of demos, the citizen body in a given geographical area which may encompass a town and the surrounding villages, or even neighbourhoods of large cities. An inclusive democracy today can only take the form of a confederal democracy that is based on a network of administrative councils whose members or delegates are elected from popular face-to-face democratic assemblies in the various demoi. Thus, their role is purely administrative and practical, not one of policy-making like that of representatives in representative democracy.The citizen body is advised by experts but it is the citizen body which functions as the ultimate decision-taker . Authority can be delegated to a segment of the citizen body to carry out specific duties, for example to serve as members of popular courts, or of regional and confederal councils. Such delegation is made, in principle, by lot, on a rotation basis, and is always recallable by the citizen body. Delegates to regional and confederal bodies should have specific mandates.

[] Participatory

Main article: Participatory politics

A Parpolity or Participatory Polity is a theoretical form of democracy that is ruled by a Nested Council structure. The guiding philosophy is that people should have decision making power in proportion to how much they are affected by the decision. Local councils of 25–50 people are completely autonomous on issues that affect only them, and these councils send delegates to higher level councils who are again autonomous regarding issues that affect only the population affected by that council.

A council court of randomly chosen citizens serves as a check on the tyranny of the majority, and rules on which body gets to vote on which issue. Delegates can vote differently than their sending council might wish, but are mandated to communicate the wishes of their sending council. Delegates are recallable at any time. Referendums are possible at any time via votes of the majority of lower level councils, however, not everything is a referendum as this is most likely a waste of time. A parpolity is meant to work in tandem with a participatory economy.

[] Socialist

“Democracy cannot consist solely of elections that are nearly always fictitious and managed by rich landowners and professional politicians.”

— Che Guevara, Marxist revolutionary[65]

Socialist thought has several different views on democracy. Social democracy, democratic socialism, and the dictatorship of the proletariat (usually exercised through Soviet democracy) are some examples. Many democratic socialists and social democrats believe in a form of participatory democracy and workplace democracy combined with a representative democracy.

Within Marxist orthodoxy there is a hostility to what is commonly called “liberal democracy”, which they simply refer to as parliamentary democracy because of its often centralized nature. Because of their desire to eliminate the political elitism they see in capitalism, Marxists, Leninists and Trotskyists believe in direct democracy implemented though a system of communes (which are sometimes called soviets). This system ultimately manifests itself as council democracy and begins with workplace democracy. (See Democracy in Marxism)

[] Anarchist

Anarchists are split in this domain, depending on whether they believe that a majority-rule is tyrannic or not. The only form of democracy considered acceptable to many anarchists is direct democracy. Pierre-Joseph Proudhon argued that the only acceptable form of direct democracy is one in which it is recognized that majority decisions are not binding on the minority, even when unanimous.[66] However, anarcho-communist Murray Bookchin criticized individualist anarchists for opposing democracy,[67] and says “majority rule” is consistent with anarchism.[68]

Some anarcho-communists oppose the majoritarian nature of direct democracy, feeling that it can impede individual liberty and opt in favour of a non-majoritarian form of consensus democracy, similar to Proudhon’s position on direct democracy.[69] Henry David Thoreau, who did not self-identify as an anarchist but argued for “a better government”[70] and is cited as an inspiration by some anarchists, argued that people should not be in the position of ruling others or being ruled when there is no consent.

[] Iroquois

Iroquois society had a form of participatory democracy and representative democracy.[71] Elizabeth Tooker, a Temple University professor of anthropology and an authority on the culture and history of the Northern Iroquois, has reviewed the claim that the Iroquois inspired the American Confederation and concluded they are myth rather than fact. The relationship between the Iroquois League and the Constitution is based on a portion of a letter written by Benjamin Franklin and a speech by the Iroquois chief Canasatego in 1744. Tooker concluded that the documents only indicate that some groups of Iroquois and white settlers realized the advantages of uniting against a common enemy, and that ultimately there is little evidence to support the idea that 18th century colonists were knowledgeable regarding the Iroquois system of governance. What little evidence there is regarding this system indicates chiefs of different tribes were permitted representation in the Iroquois League council, and this ability to represent the tribe was herary. The council itself did not practice representative government, and there were no elections; deceased chiefs’ successors were selected by the most senior woman within the herary lineage, in consultation with other women in the clan. Decision making occurred through lengthy discussion and decisions were unanimous, with topics discussed being introduced by a single tribe. Tooker concludes that “…there is virtually no evidence that the framers [of the Constitution] borrowed from the Iroquois” and that the myth that this was the case is the result of exaggerations and misunderstandings of a claim made by Iroquois linguist and ethnographer J.N.B. Hewitt after his death in 1937.[72]

[] Sortition

Main article: Sortition

Sometimes called “democracy without elections”, sortition is the process of choosing decision makers via a random process. The intention is that those chosen will be representative of the opinions and interests of the people at large, and be more fair and impartial than an elected official. The technique was in widespread use in Athenian Democracy and is still used in modern jury selection.

[] Consensus

Main article: Consensus democracy

Consensus democracy requires varying degrees of consensus rather than just a mere democratic majority. It typically attempts to protect minority rights from domination by majority rule.

[] Supranational

Qualified majority voting (QMV) is designed by the Treaty of Rome to be the principal method of reaching decisions in the European Council of Ministers. This system allocates votes to member states in part according to their population, but heavily weighted in favour of the smaller states. This might be seen as a form of representative democracy, but representatives to the Council might be appointed rather than directly elected.

Some might consider the “individuals” being democratically represented to be states rather than people, as with many other international organizations. European Parliament members are democratically directly elected on the basis of universal suffrage, may be seen as an example of a supranational democratic institution.

[] Cosmopolitan

Main article: Cosmopolitan democracy

Democracy is not only a political system… It is an ideal, an aspiration, really, intimately connected to and dependent upon a picture of what it is to be human—of what it is a human should be to be fully human.

— Nikolas Kompridis[73]

Cosmopolitan democracy, also known as Global democracy or World Federalism, is a political system in which democracy is implemented on a global scale, either directly or through representatives. An important justification for this kind of system is that the decisions made in national or regional democracies often affect people outside the constituency who, by definition, cannot vote. By contrast, in a cosmopolitan democracy, the people who are affected by decisions also have a say in them.[74]According to its supporters, any attempt to solve global problems is undemocratic without some form of cosmopolitan democracy. The general principle of cosmopolitan democracy is to expand some or all of the values and norms of democracy, including the rule of law; the non-violent resolution of conflicts; and equality among citizens, beyond the limits of the state. To be fully implemented, this would require reforming existing international organizations, e.g. the United Nations, as well as the creation of new institutions such as a World Parliament, which ideally would enhance public control over, and accountability in, international politics.

Cosmopolitan Democracy has been promoted, among others, by physicist Albert Einstein,[75] writer Kurt Vonnegut, columnist George Monbiot, and professors David Held and Daniele Archibugi.[76]

The creation of the International Criminal Court in 2003 was seen as a major step forward by many supporters of this type of cosmopolitan democracy.

[] Non-governmental

Aside from the public sphere, similar democratic principles and mechanisms of voting and representation have been used to govern other kinds of communities and organizations.

• Many non-governmental organizations decide policy and leadership by voting.
• Most trade unions choose their leadership through democratic elections.
• Cooperatives are enterprises owned and democratically controlled by their customers or workers.

[] Theory

[] Aristotle

A marble sculpture of Aristotle.

Aristotle contrasted rule by the many (democracy/polity), with rule by the few (oligarchy/aristocracy), and with rule by a single person (tyranny or today autocracy/monarchy). He also thought that there was a good and a bad variant of each system (he considered democracy to be the degenerate counterpart to polity).[77][78]

For Aristotle the underlying principle of democracy is freedom, since only in a democracy the citizens can have a share in freedom. In essence, he argues that this is what every democracy should make its aim. There are two main aspects of freedom: being ruled and ruling in turn, since everyone is equal according to number, not merit, and to be able to live as one pleases.

Now a fundamental principle of the democratic form of constitution is liberty—that is what is usually asserted, implying that only under this constitution do men participate in liberty, for they assert this as the aim of every democracy. But one factor of liberty is to govern and be governed in turn; for the popular principle of justice is to have equality according to number, not worth, and if this is the principle of justice prevailing, the multitude must of necessity be sovereign and the decision of the majority must be final and must constitute justice, for they say that each of the citizens ought to have an equal share; so that it results that in democracies the poor are more powerful than the rich, because there are more of them and whatever is decided by the majority is sovereign. This then is one mark of liberty which all democrats set down as a principle of the constitution. And one is for a man to live as he likes; for they say that this is the function of liberty, inasmuch as to live not as one likes is the life of a man that is a slave. This is the second principle of democracy, and from it has come the claim not to be governed, preferably not by anybody, or failing that, to govern and be governed in turns; and this is the way in which the second principle contributes to equalitarian liberty.[7]

[] Conceptions

Among political theorists, there are many contending conceptions of democracy.

• Aggregative democracy uses democratic processes to solicit citizens’ preferences and then aggregate them together to determine what social policies society should adopt. Therefore, proponents of this view hold that democratic participation should primarily focus on voting, where the policy with the most votes gets implemented. There are different variants of this:
  • Under minimalism, democracy is a system of government in which citizens give teams of political leaders the right to rule in periodic elections. According to this minimalist conception, citizens cannot and should not “rule” because, for example, on most issues, most of the time, they have no clear views or their views are not well-founded. Joseph Schumpeter articulated this view most famously in his book Capitalism, Socialism, and Democracy.[79] Contemporary proponents of minimalism include William H. Riker, Adam Przeworski, Richard Posner.
  • Direct democracy, on the other hand, holds that citizens should participate directly, not through their representatives, in making laws and policies. Proponents of direct democracy offer varied reasons to support this view. Political activity can be valuable in itself, it socializes and educates citizens, and popular participation can check powerful elites. Most importantly, citizens do not really rule themselves unless they directly decide laws and policies.
  • Governments will tend to produce laws and policies that are close to the views of the median voter – with half to his left and the other half to his right. This is not actually a desirable outcome as it represents the action of self-interested and somewhat unaccountable political elites competing for votes. Downs suggests that ideological political parties are necessary to act as a mediating broker between individual and governments. Anthony Downs laid out this view in his 1957 book An Economic Theory of Democracy.[80]
  • Robert A. Dahl argues that the fundamental democratic principle is that, when it comes to binding collective decisions, each person in a political community is entitled to have his/her interests be given equal consideration (not necessarily that all people are equally satisfied by the collective decision). He uses the term polyarchy to refer to societies in which there exists a certain set of institutions and procedures which are perceived as leading to such democracy. First and foremost among these institutions is the regular occurrence of free and open elections which are used to select representatives who then manage all or most of the public policy of the society. However, these polyarchic procedures may not create a full democracy if, for example, poverty prevents political participation.[81] Some[who?] see a problem with the wealthy having more influence and therefore argue for reforms like campaign finance reform. Some[who?] may see it as a problem that the majority of the voters decide policy, as opposed to majority rule of the entire population. This can be used as an argument for making political participation mandatory, like compulsory voting or for making it more patient (non-compulsory) by simply refusing power to the government until the full majority feels inclined to speak their minds.
• Deliberative democracy is based on the notion that democracy is government by discussion. Deliberative democrats contend that laws and policies should be based upon reasons that all citizens can accept. The political arena should be one in which leaders and citizens make arguments, listen, and change their minds.
• Radical democracy is based on the idea that there are hierarchical and oppressive power relations that exist in society. Democracy’s role is to make visible and challenge those relations by allowing for difference, dissent and antagonisms in decision making processes.

[] Republic

Main article: Republicanism

In contemporary usage, the term democracy refers to a government chosen by the people, whether it is direct or representative.[82] The term republic has many different meanings, but today often refers to a representative democracy with an elected head of state, such as a president, serving for a limited term, in contrast to states with a herary monarch as a head of state, even if these states also are representative democracies with an elected or appointed head of government such as a prime minister.[83]

The Founding Fathers of the United States rarely praised and often criticized democracy, which in their time tended to specifically mean direct democracy; James Madison argued, especially in The Federalist No. 10, that what distinguished a democracy from a republic was that the former became weaker as it got larger and suffered more violently from the effects of faction, whereas a republic could get stronger as it got larger and combats faction by its very structure.

What was critical to American values, John Adams insisted,[84] was that the government be “bound by fixed laws, which the people have a voice in making, and a right to defend.” As Benjamin Franklin was exiting after writing the U.S. constitution, a woman asked him “Well, Doctor, what have we got—a republic or a monarchy?”. He replied “A republic—if you can keep it.”[85]

[] Constitutional monarchs and upper chambers

Initially after the American and French revolutions the question was open whether a democracy, in order to restrain unchecked majority rule, should have an elitist upper chamber, the members perhaps appointed meritorious experts or having lifetime tenures, or should have a constitutional monarch with limited but real powers. Some countries (as Britain, the Netherlands, Belgium, Scandinavian countries, Thailand, Japan and Bhutan) turned powerful monarchs into constitutional monarchs with limited or, often gradually, merely symbolic roles.

Often the monarchy was abolished along with the aristocratic system (as in France, China, Russia, Germany, Austria, Hungary, Italy, Greece and Egypt). Many nations had elite upper houses of legislatures which often had lifetime tenure, but eventually these lost power (as in Britain) or else became elective and remained powerful (as in the United States).

[] Development of democracy

Several philosophers and researchers outlined historical and social factors supporting the evolution of democracy. Cultural factors like Protestantism influenced the development of democracy, rule of law, human rights and political liberty (the faithful elected priests, religious freedom and tolerance has been practiced).

Others mentioned the influence of wealth (e.g. S. M. Lipset, 1959). In a related theory, Ronald Inglehart suggests that the increase in living standards has convinced people that they can take their basic survival for granted, and led to increased emphasis on self-expression values, which is highly correlated to democracy.[86]

Recently established theories stress the relevance of education and human capital and within them of cognitive ability. They increase tolerance, rationality, political literacy and participation. Two effects of education and cognitive ability are distinguished: a cognitive effect (competence to make rational choices, better information processing) and an ethical effect (support of democratic values, freedom, human rights etc.), which itself depends on intelligence (cognitive development being a prerequisite for moral development; Glaeser et al., 2007; Deary et al., 2008; Rindermann, 2008). [87]

Evidence that is consistent with conventional theories of why democracy emerges and is sustained has been hard to come by. Recent statistical analyses have challenged modernization theory by demonstrating that there is no reliable evidence for the claim that democracy is more likely to emerge when countries become wealthier, more educated, or less unequal (Albertus and Menaldo, Forthcoming).[88] Neither is there convincing evidence that increased reliance on oil revenues prevents democratization, despite a vast theoretical literature called “The Resource Curse” that asserts that oil revenues sever the link between citizen taxation and government accountability, the key to representative democracy (Haber and Menaldo, Forthcoming).[89] The lack of evidence for these conventional theories of democratization have led researchers to search for the “deep” determinants of contemporary political institutions, be they geographical or demographic (Engerman and Sokoloff 1997; Acemoglu and Robinson 2008; Haber and Menaldo 2010).[90]

[] Facts

In practice it may not pay the incumbents to conduct fair elections in countries that have no history of democracy. A study showed that incumbents who rig elections stay in office 2.5 times as long as those who permit fair elections.[91] Above $2,700 per capita democracies have been found to be less prone to violence, but below that threshold, more violence.[91] The same study shows that election misconduct is more likely in countries with low per capita incomes, small populations, rich in natural resources, and a lack of institutional checks and balances. Sub-Saharan countries, as well as Afghanistan, all tend to fall into that category.[91]

Governments that have frequent elections averaged over the political cycle have significantly better economic policies than those who don’t. This does not apply to governments with fraudulent elections, however.[91]

[] Opposition to democracy

Main article: Opposition to democracy

Democracy in modern times has almost always faced opposition from the existing government. The implementation of a democratic government within a non-democratic state is typically brought about by democratic revolution. Monarchy had traditionally been opposed to democracy, and to this day remains opposed to its abolition, although often political compromise has been reached in the form of shared government.

Currently, opposition to democracy exists most notably in communist states, and absolute monarchies which appear to have various reasons for opposing the implementation of democracy or democratic reforms.[citation needed]

[] Criticism of democracy

Main article: Criticism of democracy

Economists since Milton Friedman have strongly criticized the efficiency of democracy. They base this on their premise of the irrational voter. Their argument is that voters are highly uninformed about many political issues, especially relating to economics, and have a strong bias about the few issues on which they are fairly knowledgeable.

[] Mob rule

Plato’s The Republic presents a critical view of democracy through the narration of Socrates: “Democracy, which is a charming form of government, full of variety and disorder, and dispensing a sort of equality to equals and unequaled alike.”[92] In his work, Plato lists 5 forms of government from best to worst. Assuming that the Republic was intended to be a serious critique of the political thought in Athens, Plato argues that only Kallipolis, an aristocracy led by the unwilling philosopher-kings (the wisest men) is a just form of government.

[] Political instability

More recently, democracy is criticised for not offering enough political stability. As governments are frequently elected on and off there tends to be frequent changes in the policies of democratic countries both domestically and internationally. Even if a political party maintains power, vociferous, headline grabbing protests and harsh criticism from the mass media are often enough to force sudden, unexpected political change. Frequent policy changes with regard to business and immigration are likely to deter investment and so hinder economic growth. For this reason, many people have put forward the idea that democracy is undesirable for a developing country in which economic growth and the reduction of poverty are top priority.[93]

This opportunist alliance not only has the handicap of having to cater to too many ideologically opposing factions, but it is usually short lived since any perceived or actual imbalance in the treatment of coalition partners, or changes to leadership in the coalition partners themselves, can very easily result in the coalition partner withdrawing its support from the government.

[] Popular rule as a façade

The 20th Century Italian thinkers Vilfredo Pareto and Gaetano Mosca (independently) argued that democracy was illusory, and served only to mask the reality of elite rule. Indeed, they argued that elite oligarchy is the unbendable law of human nature, due largely to the apathy and division of the masses (as opposed to the drive, initiative and unity of the elites), and that democratic institutions would do no more than shift the exercise of power from oppression to manipulation.[94]

 

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Greedy Bastards $25.00 The host of the eponymous MSNBC show, Dylan Ratigan offers a bold and original post-partisan program to resuscitate the American Dream. At a time of deep concern with the state of America’s economy and government, it seems that all the media can give us is talking (or screaming) heads who revel in partisan brinkmanship. Then there’s Dylan Ratigan—an award-winning journalist respec…

Last Kiss in Tiananmen Square $2.99 “Last Kiss in Tiananmen Square” is a novel based on the 1989 Tiananmen Square Pro-democracy movement. The novel follows a young woman, Baiyun, a junior in college, trying to reconcile her upbringing while in the midst of the rising political movement in Beijing, China.Baiyun grew up in a strange and cold household: her mother, Meiling, brought her many young lovers to their home while Baiyun was a…

A Heart for Freedom $22.99 The dramatic and fascinating story of Chai Ling, commander-in-chief of the student protesters at Tiananmen Square and witness to the massacre of thousands of Chinese civilians. Risking imprisonment and possible death for her leadership role in the student democracy movement, she was on the run in China for ten months while being hunted by the authorities. She eventually escaped to the U.S., completed her education at Princeton and Harvard, found true love, and became a highly successful entrepreneur. But her desperate quest for freedom, purpose, and peace–which she had sought in turn through academic achievement, romantic love, political activism, and career success–was never satisfied until she had an unexpected encounter with a formerly forbidden faith. Her newfound passion for God led to her life”s greatest mission: Fighting for the lives and rights of young girls in China.

After Capitalism $75 Since first published in 2002, After Capitalism has offered students and political activists alike a coherent vision of a viable and desirable alternative to capitalism. David Schweickart calls this system Economic Democracy, a successor-system to capitalism which preserves the efficiency strengths of a market economy while extending democracy to the workplace and to the structures of investment finance. In the second edition, Schweickart recognizes that increased globalization of companies has created greater than ever interdependent economies and the debate about the desirability of entrepreneurship is escalating. The new edition includes a new preface, completely updated data, reorganized chapters, and new sections on the economic instability of capitalism, the current economic crisis, and China. Drawing on both theoretical and empirical research, Schweickart shows how and why this model is efficient, dynamic, and applicable in the world today.

An American Teacher in China: Coping with Cultures $117.34 From the perspective of six years in Beijing (1986-1992), Kretschmer offers a lively account of how American Foreign Experts go berserk in China, how they gradually adjust to Chinese culture, and how they eventually acquire a unique bicultural vision of the world. Kretschmer combines entertaining sketches of the bumbling China Thumb with penetrating glimpses of the population policy at work. He addresses issues related to the function and purpose of education, economics, democracy, and a free press in China and at home. Kretschmer is particularly sensitive to culturally conceived mythologies of reality and how they differ for Chinese and Americans. A Renaissance scholar with an extensive background in cross-cultural experience and broad-ranging interests, Kretschmer serves the reader a Chinese banquet of thought-provoking observation about their culture and ours.

At Home Abroad $33.95 The United States has never felt at home abroad. The problem is not threats to American power — the United States has faced few direct security threats. The reason for this unease is that Americans see themselves as members of an exceptional liberal society in a world until recently composed of largely non-democratic states. The United States finds no comfort in this world and, alternately, tries to withdraw from or reform it. But withdrawal violates an American sense of moral purpose, and global reform exhausts its resources. America cycles between ambitious efforts to enlarge democracy and create a New World Order, and more humble appeals to reduce U.S. military commitments and require that European and Japanese allies do more.In At Home Abroad, Henry R. Nau explains that America is no longer exceptional. All the industrial great powers are now strong democracies. When identities converge, nations do not need to balance military power against one another. U.S. relations with western Europe and Japan constitute a new, peaceful partnership that anchors America’s identity in the world.Nau shows how national identities as well as national power interact to define America’s national interests. He combines realist and constructivist perspectives to differentiate U.S. grand strategy toward various countries. The author provides many fresh insights to guide policymakers who must deal with both moral and material interests simultaneously.In Europe, the identity and power perspective advocates NATO expansion to consolidate democratic identities in eastern Europe and concurrent but separate great power cooperation with Russia in the United Nations. In Asia, it recommends thedevelopment of a multilateral democratic security community with Japan, Australia, and South Korea, progressively widening to include ASEAN states and, if it democratizes, China. In the developing world, it cautions against U.S. military intervention unless U.S. identity (moral) and power (mater

Beyond Liberal Democracy $30.95 This book is a lively and insightful contribution to what will be a major debate of the twenty-first century: how profound differences of culture and value will give a different shape to the core institutions of modernity in different civilizations. Drawing on both philosophical analysis and wide empirical knowledge, Daniel Bell examines the continuing importance of Confucianism in East Asia, and its relevance for democracy, human rights, and capitalism. What’s more, as a normative theorist, he goes beyond this to argue for the legitimacy of some persistent differences. This engaging and well-written book will provoke much-needed controversy in our overly complacent Western societies. –Charles Taylor, author of Multiculturalism and Sources of the Self Daniel Bell’s Beyond Liberal Democracy challenges the prevailing idea in Western liberal political theory that liberal democracy is a universal value. By comparing East Asian and Western perspectives on issues such as human rights, democracy, and capitalism, Bell forcefully demonstrates that East Asian political traditions contain morally legitimate alternatives to Western-style liberal democracy. He demonstrates a rare knowledge of both Western and Eastern political philosophies. Bell’s work will help Western political scientists understand the contribution of East Asian cultures to political theory. But equally it will help East Asian scholars understand their own political tradition through a comparative perspective. –Li Qiang, Peking University For over a decade, Daniel Bell has been probing the meaning and feasibility of ‘democracy, ‘ ‘human rights, ‘ and ‘capitalism’ in an East Asian setting. Beyond LiberalDemocracy pulls many of these strands together in a stimulating, readable, and often humorous fashion. This book is a must for anyone involved with or concerned about China and the other important countries marked by Confucian political-legal culture. It’s a friendly, engaging conversation. –Jer

Bread and the Ballot $40 Dennis Merrill examines the origins and implementation of U.S. economic assistance programs in India from independence in 1947 to the height of John F. Kennedy”s development decade in 1963. As the Cold War spread to the Third World in the late 1940s and 1950s, American policymakers tried to use economic aid to draw neutral India into the Western camp. Citing the country as the world”s largest democracy, the Americans hoped to establish India as a showcase for American@-sponsored development and a counterweight to the Communist model in the People”s Republic of China.

Burning Books And Leveling Libraries $42.16 Whether the product of passion or of a cool-headed decision to use ideas to rationalize excess, the decimation of the world’s libraries occurred throughout the 20th century, and there is no end in sight. Cultural destruction is, therefore, of increasing concern. In her previous book Libricide, Rebecca Knuth focused on book destruction by authoritarian regimes: Nazis, Serbs in Bosnia, Iraqis in Kuwait, Maoists during the Cultural Revolution in China, and the Chinese Communists in Tibet. But authoritarian governments are not the only perpetrators. Extremists of all stripes–through terrorism, war, ethnic cleansing, genocide, and other forms of mass violence–are also responsible for widespread cultural destruction, as she demonstrates in this new book. Burning Books and Leveling Libraries is structured in three parts. BLPart I is devoted to struggles by extremists over voice and power at the local level, where destruction of books and libraries is employed as a tactic of political or ethnic protest. BLPart II discusses the aftermath of power struggles in Germany, Afghanistan, and Cambodia, where the winners were utopians who purged libraries in efforts to purify their societies and maintain power. BLPart III examines the fate of libraries when there is war and a resulting power vacuum. The book concludes with a discussion of the events in Iraq in 2003, and the responsibility of American war strategists for the widespread pillaging that ensued after the toppling of Saddam Hussein. This case poignantly demonstrates the ease with which an oppressed people, given the collapse of civil restraints, may claim freedom as license for anarchy, construing it as the right to prevail, while ignoringits implicit mandate of social responsibility. Using military might to enforce ideals (in this case democracy and freedom) is futile, Knuth argues, if insufficient consideration is given to humanitarian, security, and cultural concerns.

China $22.16 China’s dramatic transformation over the past fifteen years has drawn its share of attention and fear from the global community and world leaders. Far from the inward-looking days of the Cultural Revolution, modern China today is the world’s fourth largest economy, with a net product larger than that of France and the United Kingdom. And China’s dynamism is by no means limited to its economy: enrollments in secondary and higher education are rapidly expanding, and new means of communication are vastly increasing information available to the Chinese public. In two decades, the Chinese government has also transformed its foreign relations–Beijing is now consulted on virtually every key development within the region. However, the Communist Party of China still dominates all aspects of political life. The Politburo is still self-selecting, Beijing chooses province governors, censorship is widespread, and treatment of dissidents remains harsh. In China, leading experts provide an overview of the region, highlighting key issues as they developed in the People’s Republic of China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. Edited with an introduction by David B. H. Denoon, an authority on China, this volume of articles covers recent events and key issues in understanding this growing superpower. Organized into three thematic sections–foreign policy and national security, economic policy and social issues, and domestic politics and governance–the essays cover salient topics such as China’s military power, de-communization, growing economic strength, nationalism, and the possibility for democracy. The volume also contains current maps as well as a Recent Chronology of Events which provides a decade’s worth ofinformation on the region, organized by year and by country.Contributors: Liu Binyan, David B.H. Denoon, Bruce J. Dickson, June Teufel Dreyer, Michael Dutton, Elizabeth Economy, Barry Eichengreen, Edward Friedman, Dru C. Gladney, Paul H. B. Godwin, Merle Goldman, Richard Madsen, Barry

China Counting $49 China is now the global counting house, trading Western debt and cashing Western obligations – financially, socially and diplomatically. By ”buying” its own democratic electorate with easy credit, the West has ceded power to the Chinese. China”s primary goal, however, is internal stability and external security, aiming neither for international dominance nor military confrontation. Its governing Party has a national mandate – of, by and for the people – a main street mandate for a resurgent China. Mackinnon and Powell show how China is determining its destiny. This book interprets China”s policy of gradual global expansion and the alternatives it offers to open capitalism and liberal democracy. It sifts constants from variables to reveal a China positioning itself for recognition as an equal.

China and Africa $168 With Chinas rise to the status of world power, trade and political links between Africa and China have been escalating at an astonishing rate. Sino-African relations are set to become an increasingly significant feature of world politics as Chinas hunger for energy resources grows and many African countries seek a partner that, unlike the West, does not worry about democracy and transparency, or impose political conditions on economic relations.Ian Taylor, one of the foremost authorities on the international relations and political economy of Africa, provides a comprehensive assessment of relations between China and Africa. He discusses the historical evolution of Sino-African relations in the period since the 1949 revolution, with particular emphasis on the period since the end of the Cultural Revolution. Considering in detail Chinas relations with Angola, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Zambia, South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho, Swaziland and Malawi, Taylor demonstrates how China has used the rhetoric of anti-hegemonies to secure and promote its position in the Third World.Taylor gives an engaging account of the hitherto under-researched topic of relations between China and Africa, a phenomenon of growing importance in contemporary international politics.

China and Japan in the Global Setting $29.02 The relationship between China and Japan remains among the most significant of all the world’s bilateral affairs – yet it is also the most tortured and the least understood. Akira Iriye adds brilliant clarity to the past century of Chinese-Japanese interactions in this masterful interpretive survey. Placing the relationship within its global context, he outlines three distinct periods in the history of these Asian giants. From the 1880s to World War I, the two nations struggled for power. Armaments, war strategies, and security measures played pivotal roles, reflecting the importance of military calculations in a world dominated by Western governments. In the second period, that between the two World Wars, Iriye illuminates the dominant role of culture and the stress on internationalism. China’s continuing literary influence, an exchange of ideas and students, reforms such as Japan’s Taisho democracy and China’s May Fourth movement, and both nations’ bid for racial equality in the West profoundly affected these interwar years. The third period reaches from the end of World War II through the present day, and is characterized by exchanges of an economic nature: trade, shipping, investment, and emigration. The author discusses the results of China’s civil war, the rise and decline of the Cold War in the West, and the cultural and ecological problems brought by Japan’s spiraling economic development. But economic ties remain deeply entwined with cultural concerns, and ultimately, Iriye stresses, the future of China and Japan depends on the successful cultural interdependence of what may be the most significant pair of countries in the world today.

China’s Republic $34.99 Twenty-first century China is emerging from decades of war and revolution into a new era. Yet the past still haunts the present. The ideals of the Chinese Republic, which was founded almost a century ago after 2000 years of imperial rule, still resonate as modern China edges towards openness and democracy. Diana Lary traces the history of the Republic from its beginnings in 1912, through the Nanjing decade, the warlord era, and the civil war with the Peoples’ Liberation Army which ended in defeat in 1949. Thereafter, in an unusual excursion from traditional histories of the period, she considers how the Republic survived on in Taiwan, comparing its ongoing prosperity with the economic and social decline of the Communist mainland in the Mao years. This introductory textbook for students and general readers is enhanced with biographies of key protagonists, Chinese proverbs, love stories, poetry and a feast of illustrations.

China’s Rise, Taiwan’s Dilemmas and International Peace $44.95 Incorporating interviews, archival material and original research, this book examines the troubled relationship between China, Taiwan and the US. It questions whether China will use military force to achieve political dominance over Taiwan, and how the US proposes to maintain peace between the two countries, ensuring a continuation of democracy in Taiwan and good relations with China.

China, Democracy, and Law $320 China, Democracy, and Law

Countries and Concepts $131.8 Systematically examining politics from around the world, Countries and Concepts presents ten accessible and in-depth studies of Britain, France, Germany, Russia, Japan, China, India, Mexico, Nigeria, and Iran. This text looks at similarities and differences in five key areas of each country to facilitate comparative analysis, defining important concepts and integrating examples from current events throughout. Highly readable and thought-provoking, Countries and Concepts introduces students to the politics and governments of the world and bolsters their civic education by considering the historical, political, economic, geographical, and moral aspects of democracy.

Countries and Concepts $123.19 Systematically examining politics from around the world, Countries and Concepts presents ten accessible and in-depth studies of Britain, France, Germany, Russia, Japan, China, India, Mexico, Nigeria, and Iran. This text looks at similarities and differences in five key areas of each country to facilitate comparative analysis, defining important concepts and integrating examples from current events throughout. Highly readable and thought-provoking, Countries and Concepts introduces students to the politics and governments of the world and bolsters their civic education by considering the historical, political, economic, geographical, and moral aspects of democracy.

Culture & Politics in China $10.56 As the world watched the crumbling away of communist regimes in Eastern Europe, the pro-democracy movement in China was dealt a severe blow in June of 1989. Also referred to as the June 4th Incident, the Tiananmen Square protest included students, intellectuals, and workers demanding democratic reforms and social change. To break up the escalating protest armed soldiers stormed the square killing close to two hundred demonstrators and injuring thousands more. Culture and Politics in China explores the events, trends, and tendencies that led to the student demonstrations.

Dangerous Strait $28.26 Dangerous Strait provides fresh perspectives on the complex political, economic, and strategic issues of the Taiwan Strait. Essays examine a variety of topics, which include the movement for independence and its place in Taiwanese domestic politics, the underlying weaknesses of democracy in Taiwan, and the significance of China and Taiwan”s economic interdependence. In the area of security, contributors provide incisive critiques of Taiwan”s incomplete military modernization, the strains in U.S.-Taiwan relations and their differing interpretations of China”s intentions, and the misguided inclination to abandon Washington”s traditional policy of strategic ambiguity.

Debating Political Reform in China $43.95 This book brings the ongoing debate to life and explores the options for political reform. Offering the perpectives of both Western and Chinese scholars, it presents the controversial argument for building a consultive rule of law regime as an alternative to liberal democracy, provides several critiques of this thesis, and then tests the thesis through empirial studies on the development of the rule of law in China.

Democracy’s Good Name $2.04 Presenting a lucid, comprehensive, and surprising account of the history of democracy, one of Americas leading foreign policy thinkers analyzes the prospects for the establishment of democratic governments in Russia, China, and the Arab world.

Dragon Seed $14.95 The story of Tzu Hsi is the story of the last empress in China. In the novel, Nobel Prize Winner, Pearl S. Buck recreates the life of one of the most interesting rulers during a time of intense turbulence.Pearl S. Buck”s knowledge of and fascination with the Empresses” life are contagious. She reveals the essence of this self-involved and infamous last empress, at the same time she takes the reader through China”s struggle for freedom and democracy.

Electing to Fight $19 Drawing on both qualitative and quantitative analysis, Mansfield and Snyder show that emerging democracies with weak political institutions are especially likely to go to war. Leaders of these countries attempt to rally support by invoking external threats and resorting to belligerent, nationalist rhetoric. Mansfield and Snyder point to this pattern in cases ranging from revolutionary France to contemporary Russia. Because the risk of a state’s being involved in violent conflict is high until democracy is fully consolidated, Mansfield and Snyder argue, the best way to promote democracy is to begin by building the institutions that democracy requires — such as the rule of law — and only then encouraging mass political participation and elections. Readers will find this argument particularly relevant to prevailing concerns about the transitional government in Iraq. Electing to Fight also calls into question the wisdom of urging early elections elsewhere in the Islamic world and in China.

Five Years of Tory Rule; A Lesson and a Warning $20 This is an OCR edition without illustrations or index. It may have numerous typos or missing text. However, purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original rare book from GeneralBooksClub.com. You can also preview excerpts from the book there. Purchasers are also entitled to a free trial membership in the General Books Club where they can select from more than a million books without charge. Original Published by: Hodder and Stoughton in 1879 in 77 pages; Subjects: Business & Economics / Public Finance; History / Australia & New Zealand; History / Asia / China; History / Europe / Great Britain; History / Europe / Ireland; Law / General; Political Science / General; Political Science / Government / Legislative Branch; Political Science / Political Ideologies / Democracy; Political Science / Public Affairs & Administration; Political Science / Government / National;

Forgotten Continent $89.05 Latin America has often been condemned to failure. Neither poor enough to evoke Africa”s moral crusade nor as explosively booming as India and China, it has largely been overlooked by the West. Yet this vast continent, home to half a billion people, the world”s largest reserves of arable land, and 8.5 percent of global oil, is busily transforming its political and economic landscape. Reid argues that rather than failing the test Latin America”s efforts to build more prosperous societies make it one of the world”s most vigorous laboratories for capitalist democracy. Drawing on Reid”s many years of reporting from inside Latin America”s cities, presidential palaces, and shantytowns, this book provides a vivid, immediate, and informed account of a dynamic continent and its struggle to compete in a globalized world.

Forgotten Continent $44.95 Latin America has often been condemned to failure. Neither poor enough to evoke Africa”s moral crusade nor as explosively booming as India and China, it has largely been overlooked by the West. Yet this vast continent, home to half a billion people, the world”s largest reserves of arable land, and 8.5 percent of global oil, is busily transforming its political and economic landscape. Reid argues that rather than failing the test Latin America”s efforts to build more prosperous societies make it one of the world”s most vigorous laboratories for capitalist democracy. Drawing on Reid”s many years of reporting from inside Latin America”s cities, presidential palaces, and shantytowns, this book provides a vivid, immediate, and informed account of a dynamic continent and its struggle to compete in a globalized world.

Forgotten Continent $123 Latin America has often been condemned to failure. Neither poor enough to evoke Africa”s moral crusade nor as explosively booming as India and China, it has largely been overlooked by the West. Yet this vast continent, home to half a billion people, the world”s largest reserves of arable land, and 8.5 percent of global oil, is busily transforming its political and economic landscape. Reid argues that rather than failing the test Latin America”s efforts to build more prosperous societies make it one of the world”s most vigorous laboratories for capitalist democracy. Drawing on Reid”s many years of reporting from inside Latin America”s cities, presidential palaces, and shantytowns, this book provides a vivid, immediate, and informed account of a dynamic continent and its struggle to compete in a globalized world.

From Planet Earth: A Cry for Justice – A Cry for Peace $19.95 The book is a presentation, and discussion, of many social issues facing our world today. Topics were collected from books, television news reports, lectures, debates, comments by politicians worldwide, newspaper and magazine articles, and even the motion picture industry; and other personal contacts and communications. A chronicle of events in Iraq, since the war started, is also outlined, as Iraq continues to dominate daily news releases around the globe; and because many experts have stated that the United States government had made many miscalculations in the handling of Iraq; let alone, that the war itself was a huge mistake, labeled by most people worldwide as both illegal and immoral. Difficulties encountered in most countries are identified, as these caused much suffering amongst their people; and possible steps towards achieving solutions are presented. Those included are: hunger and poverty, healthcare, education, economy, human rights, justice, freedom, and a definition of true democracy, the environment, on corruption in politics and corporations, and most importantly, achieving and preserving world peace. Middle East conflicts are highlighted as well, but reference is also made to countries across planet earth — large or small, rich or poor, developed or underdeveloped. These include the United States, the United Kingdom, the European Union, the Island of Malta, countries in Latin America, Africa, the former Soviet Union, China, India, Pakistan, and much more. A section is also devoted to events in the life of a most remarkable human being — the late Pope, John Paul II.

India Booms $2.41 The ancient birthplace of some of the world”s major religions and now a modern nuclear power, India is experiencing spectacular economic growth. In 25 years, its population will overtake that of China, making it one of the most populous and rapidly developing countries in the world and this book explores the changing face of modern-day India and its fundamental contradictions. The country is leading the world in cutting-edge technology and research, but it is also home to 40 percent of the world”s malnourished children. It is a liberal democracy, yet its political processes are influenced by some of the most conservative religious ideas in the world. The booming economy is at times both global and archaic. Getting to the heart of these inconsistencies, Farndon gives a fascinating insight into the country as it is now and as it will be in the future, and reveals how the changes in India will affect the world.

India Express $18 These days India is in the news almost daily, and it is taking on a much more involved role in international politics, policy, and military intervention. Daniel Lak concludes that the strength that democracy gives it means that India is much better positioned to sustain its newfound superpower status than China, whose political system is sure to eventually hinder it. As an expert who has covered the region for the BBC for the last twelve years, Lak weaves together his substantive knowledge of Indian politics, economics, and culture with fascinating stories of everyday people, to supply readers with a comprehensive and compelling guide to this fascinating country.

Inklings of Democracy in China $15.3 Inklings of Democracy in China

Intermediate Reader of Modern Chinese $55 This textbook, prepared for American students who have already completed two semesters of Chinese, does not talk down to the student, and its contemporary subject matter will provoke classroom discussion. Successfully encouraging speaking as well as reading practice, the work progresses from correspondence and dialogue to short essays. Lessons 1 through 10 focus on college life in the United States, 11 through 15 concern political and social issues in contemporary China, and 16 through 20 present biographies of three well-known figures in Chinese intellectual history and analyses of the Chinese Democracy Movement and the Tiananmen Square incident. Lessons 21 and 22 deal with Chinese translations of foreign place names and the Gulf War and are designed to accustom students to reading Chinese newspapers. The lessons in this text offer sufficient material for a two-semester course with five contact hours per week. For the text and vocabulary traditional and simplified characters are juxtaposed. The exercises of each lesson are included in the vocabulary volume. An index to the glossary is included.Audio and video materials are available for use with this text. For further information, contact the Chinese Linguistics Project, 231 Palmer Hall, Princeton University, Princeton, N.J. 08544. (609-258-4269).

Inventing China Through History $25.45 This book describes the rise of national history in early-twentieth-century China. It studies the careers of a group of liberal historians including well-known figures such as Liang Qichao and Hu Shi and lesser known figures such as He Bingsong, Fu Sinian, Yao Congwu, and Chen Yinke. Buoyed by the quest for Mr. Science and Mr. Democracy during the May Fourth Movement of 1919, these historians searched for a scientific presentation of China’s national past, inspired by the Western and Japanese practice of scientific history.

Journalism And Democracy In Asia $178 Journalism and Democracy in Asia addresses key issues of freedom, democracy, citizenship, openness and journalism in contemporary Asia, looking especially at China, Japan, Korea, Indonesia, the Philippines and India. The authors take varying approaches to questions of democracy, whilst also considering journalism in print, radio and new media, in relation to such questions as the role of social, political and economic liberalization in bringing about a blooming of the media, the relationship between the media and the development of democracy and civil society, and how journalism copes under authoritarian rule.With contributions from highly regarded experts in the region examining a broad range of issues from across Asia, this book will be of high interest to students and scholars in political communications, journalism and mass communication and Asian studies.

Journalism and Democracy in Asia $44.95 Journalism and Democracy in Asia addresses key issues of freedom, democracy, citizenship, openness and journalism in contemporary Asia, looking especially at China, Japan, Korea, Indonesia, the Philippines and India. The authors take varying approaches to questions of democracy, whilst also considering journalism in print, radio and new media, in relation to such questions as the role of social, political and economic liberalization in bringing about a blooming of the media, the relationship between the media and the development of democracy and civil society, and how journalism copes under authoritarian rule.With contributions from highly regarded experts in the region examining a broad range of issues from across Asia, this book will be of high interest to students and scholars in political communications, journalism and mass communication and Asian studies.

Law, Capitalism and Power in Asia $118.27 A challenging and provocative book that contests the liberal assumption that the rule of law will go hand in hand with a transition to market-based economies and even democracy in East Asia. Using case studies from Hong Kong, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Taiwan, Japan and Vietnam, the authors argue that the rule of law is in fact more likely to provide political elites with the means closely to control civil society. It is essential, therefore, to locate conceptions of judicial independence and the rule of law more generally within the ideological vocabulary of the state.

Losing the New China: A Story of American Commerce, Desire, and Betrayal $15.3 This book reveals how and why U.S. corporations helped replace the Goddess of Democracy that once stood in Tiananmen Square with the Gods of Mammon and Mars that dominate China today.

Making Sense of Chindia $52.99 Presenting an overview of current and future geopolitical interactions between India and China, this series of essays addresses the huge potential for trade and other forms of exchange that exists between the two countries. Essay topics address continuing security concerns, the issue of democracy in China, and the ongoing battle against HIV/AIDS in the context of two complementary, competitive, and fast-growing economies.

Mao Zedong and China’s Revolutions $84 Whether one views Mao Zedong as a hero or a demon, the Great Helmsman was undoubtedly a pivotal figure in the history of 20th-century China. The first part of this volume is an introductory essay that traces the history of 20th-century China, from Mao”s early career up to the Chinese Communist Party”s victory in 1949, through three decades of revolution, to Mao”s death I 1976. The second half offers a selection of Mao”s writings–including such seminal pieces as On the New Democracy and selections from the Little Red Book –and writings about Mao and his legacy by both his contemporaries and modern scholars. Also included are headnotes, a chronology, Questions for Consideration, photographs, a selected bibliography, and index.

Marketization and Democracy in China $44.95 Marketization and Democracy in China

Marketization and Democracy: East Asian Experiences $188.65 As the East Asian financial crisis continues to leave a path of economic and political destruction in its wake, people all over the world seek to know what went wrong. Many blame the illiberal markets of the countries involved, and many blame their political leadership. This book explores how strong, open, liberalized markets create a counterbalance to crony capitalism and corruption and form the basis for a foundation of political liberalization. Using both a quantitative model and qualitative country studies, this work analyzes the experiences of China, Taiwan, Indonesia, and Korea in moving toward both marketization and democracy.

Media, Market and Democracy in China $23.22 Media, Market and Democracy in China

Modern Mongolia $34.95 Land-locked between its giant neighbors, Russia and China, Mongolia was the first Asian country to adopt communism and the first to abandon it. When the Soviet Union collapsed in the early 1990s, Mongolia turned to international financial agencies–including the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, and the Asian Development Bank–for help in compensating for the economic changes caused by disruptions in the communist world. Modern Mongolia is the best-informed and most thorough account to date of the political economy of Mongolia during the past decade. In it, Morris Rossabi explores the effects of the withdrawal of Soviet assistance, the role of international financial agencies in supporting a pure market economy, and the ways that new policies have led to greater political freedom but also to unemployment, poverty, increasingly inequitable distribution of income, and deterioration in the education, health, and well-being of Mongolian society. Rossabi demonstrates that the agencies providing grants and loans insisted on Mongolia’s adherence to a set of policies that did not generally take into account the country’s unique heritage and society. Though the sale of state assets, minimalist government, liberalization of trade and prices, a balanced budget, and austerity were supposed to yield marked economic growth, Mongolia–the world’s fifth-largest per capita recipient of foreign aid–did not recover as expected. As he details this painful transition from a collective to a capitalist economy, Rossabi also analyzes the cultural effects of the sudden opening of Mongolia to democracy. He looks at the broader implications of Mongolia’s international situation and considers itsfuture, particularly in relation to China.

My Life and My Country $5.4 General Alexander Lebed is the most popular leader in Russia and its likely next president. Now, here is the brawling autobiography of this paratrooper, politician, peacemaker, and patriot. General Lebed’s story takes readers from vodka-sodden arguments settled by teeth-rattling fisticuffs in Russian army barracks, to the chaos of the attempted coup against Gorbachev and Yeltsin (in which Lebed took orders from both Yeltsin and the coup-minded military officers), to Russia’s volatile present and its undetermined future. Here are Lebed’s controversial thoughts on NATO expansion, Russia’s political and economic relations with the United States and the West, and the outlook for Russian democracy and free-market reforms. The most important international political book of the year, General Alexander Lebed: My Life and My Country provides unparalleled insight into the likely leader of the nuclear power that covers one-sixth of the globe, that neighbors a resurgent China and a triumphant NATO, and that is confronting economic turmoil and multi-ethnic conflict.

New Challenges to Democratization $39.95 Brings together leading international scholars to assess the claim that democratization around the world is facing a serious challenge and features in-depth studies on US democracy promotion, the Middle East, Russia, China and new democracies.

Paper Butterfly $0.01 Diane Wei Liang was born in Beijing. She spent part of her childhood with her parents in a labor camp in a remote region of China. In 1989 she took part in the Student Democracy Movement and protested in Tiananmen Square. Diane is a graduate of Peking University. She has a Ph.D. in business administration from Carnegie Mellon University and was a professor of business in the U.S. and the U.K. for more than ten years. She now writes full-time and lives in London with her husband and their two children.

Political Parties, Party Systems and Democratization in East Asia $99 Some fledging democracies in the world have encountered setbacks due to political parties trying to grapple with the expectations of sophisticated electorates and introducing gradual political reforms over the years. This book describes how democracy is evolving in East Asia and how it assumes different forms in different countries, with political parties adapting and evolving alongside. It has a two-fold intent. First, it contends that the existing variety of party systems in East Asia will endure and may even flourish, rather than converge as liberal democracies. Second, it highlights the seeming political durability of one party systems unlike two-part or multi-party systems in the US and Europe and their enduring predominance in countries such as Cambodia, China, Singapore and Vietnam.

Politics in Taiwan: Voting for Reform $66.95 This book shows that Taiwan, unlike other countries, avoided serious economic disruption and social conflict, and arrived at its goal of multi-party competition with little blood shed. Nonetheless, this survey reveals that for those who imagine democracy to be the panacea for every social, economic and political ill, Taiwan”s continuing struggles against corruption, isolation and division offer a cautionary lesson.This book is an ideal, one-stop resource for undergraduate and postgraduate students of political science, particuarly those interested in the international politics of China, and the Asia-Pacific.

Price of Tea in China -Awp $22.39 With the practiced eye of a traveler at large, E. Shaskan Bumas portrays characters struggling to define their relationships to each other and to their time. Whether scientists or artisans, punks or new-agers, single mothers or students, activists or children in harm’s way, Bumas’s characters fill these stories with heart and subversive humor. The Price of Tea in China depicts places as far-flung as a Manhattan ghetto and a provincial Chinese city through an exploration of human relationships that makes each location both foreign and familiar. In Flag of Fire , an American teacher becomes caught up in the lives of students engaged in China’s pro-democracy movement. Your Cordially Requested Presence reveals a man’s humorous sufferings as he acts the part of fiance for a lesbian friend at her cousin’s wedding. The Attraction to Gravity brings us a young man whose growing appreciation of his girlfriend’s small daughter is threatened by her father’s reappearance. In Cupid’s Carriers , a student chronicles college life in the era of punk rock through a journal that takes on a life of its own. In Emerging , a neighborhood’s web of inhabitants is torn apart by a police riot, and in Spare the Child , a man describes the unplanned pregnancy of his girlfriend with biting dislike.

Promoting the Rule of Law Abroad: In Search of Knowledge $19.95 Over the past decade, Carothers has established himself as the leading U.S. expert on democracy promotion. He is a powerful critic not only of the nuts-and-bolts of democracy assistance but also of U.S. grand strategy overall. — SAIS Review Promoting the rule of law has become a major part of Western efforts to spread democracy and market economics around the world. Yet, although programs to foster the rule of law abroad have mushroomed, well-grounded knowledge about what factors ensure success, and why, remains scarce. In Promoting the Rule of Law Abroad, leading practitioners and policy-oriented scholars draw on years of experience — in Russia, China, Latin America, Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa — to critically assess the rationale, methods, and goals of rule-of-law policies. These incisive, accessible essays offer vivid portrayals and penetrating analyses of the challenges that define this vital but surprisingly little-understood field. Contributors include Rachel Belton (Truman National Security Project), Lisa Bhansali (World Bank), Christina Biebesheimer (World Bank), Thomas Carothers (Carnegie Endowment), Wade Channell, Stephen Golub, and David Mednicoff (University of Massachusetts, Amherst), Laure-Hilhne Piron (Overseas Development Institute), Matthew Spence (Yale Law School), Matthew Stephenson (Harvard Law School), and Frank Upham (NYU School of Law).

Rural Democracy in China $95 This book examines the status of village democracy, studies the achievements and the problems, explains its dynamics, and investigates the prospects of China”s democratization. It challenges the skeptics with a nuanced assessment of village democracy in its variety and diversity. It develops an understanding of how three key factors – township, economy and kinship– shape village democracy and account for the variations of rural democracy. The extension of village to township elections has been examined and an idea of mixed regime being formulated with an examination of its key features and implications for our understanding of political development in China.

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