陌上美國 Moshang USA
獨立快捷的時評和美國生活信息谘詢
We are a Republic, Not Democracy
民主是一種基於多數統治原則的政府形式。討論到此為止，這並不複雜。多數統治很容易理解，也很容易向大眾推廣，但我還要補充一點，它是致命的。例如，你會如何形容一群私刑者？這就是多數統治。隻有一個反對票，而他正站在絞索的末端。這就是純粹的民主運作。但你可能會說，應該由多數統治。是的，但不應達到破壞少數人權利的程度。
現在，女士們先生們，我們不再在描述一個民主國家，而是在談論一個共和國。共和國是一種有限的民主政府形式，基於有限的多數統治原則。這種限製使得少數群體，甚至隻有一個人的少數群體，也能免受多數人的任性和激情的影響。
那麽，如何保護少數人免受多數人的侵害呢？你將一套規則寫在紙上，注明哪些是可以做的，哪些是不能做的。紙的頂部寫上“憲法”這個詞，然後每個人都同意無論受到多大的誘惑，都要遵守這些規則。當你完成這些時，你就創建了一個憲政共和國。
"Democracy is a form of government based upon the principle of majority rule. Period. End of discussion. Now that's not very complicated majority rule. It's easy to understand, easy to sell to the masses, and I might add, deadly. For example, what would you call a lynch mop? That's majority rule. There's only one descending vote, and he's at the end of the rope. Now, that's pure democracy in action. But wait a minute, you say the majority should rule. Yes, but not to the extent of destroying the rights of the minority.
And now, ladies and gentlemen, we are no longer describing a democracy. We are speaking of a republic. A republic is a limited democracy. It's a form of government based upon the principle of limited majority rule. Limited, so that the minority even a minority of one can be protected against the whims and passions of the majority.
And how do you protect the minority from the majority? You write down a set of rules on a piece of paper, you say this we can do that we cannot. At the top of the paper, you write the word Constitution, and then everyone agrees to follow the rules no matter what the temptation. And when you're finished, you've created a Constitutional Republic."
順祝大家獨立日快樂，美國生日快樂！
