When Democracies Falter

the AZEL PERSPECTIVE Commentary on Cuba's Future, U.S. Foreign Policy & Individual Freedoms - Issue 429 B

José Azel's latest books "On Freedom" and "Sobre La Libertad" are now available on Amazon.  When Democracies Falter (Previously published) Share Tweet Forward

Democracies end when they become too democratic. This is the central argument of Andrew Sullivan in a vitriolic, pre-election anti-Trump article in The New York Magazine (May 2016). Sullivan, who Forbes magazine has ranked among “The 25 Most Influential Liberals in the U.S. Media,” builds his highbrow case on a tortuous reading of Plato and the Founding Fathers. The article warns that in our hyper-democratic times, as the authority of elites fades, establishment values cede to popular ones; the emotional component of politics becomes inflamed, and reason retreats because there are fewer elite arbiters to establish what is actually true or relevant. He concludes that we need elites to protect democracy from its own destabilizing excess, and urges anti- democratic measures to save democracy from itself.  Democracy is in crisis, but the cause is not “too much democracy” as claimed by Sullivan. The Democracy Index 2016, a yearly report on the state of democracy worldwide provides the data. The Index scores countries in five categories: electoral process, civil liberties, the functioning of government, political participation, and political culture. Based on the scores, each country is classified as: full democracy, flawed democracy, hybrid regime, or authoritarian state.  Over the last 10 years, 81 of the 167 countries covered by the Index (48.5%) have declined in their overall democracy scores. Currently, only 4.5% of the world’s population, in 19 countries, can be said to live in full democracies. In 2016, for the first time, the United States was downgraded to a “flawed democracy” as confidence in the functioning of public institutions declined during the Obama administration.  This years’ Democracy Index titled “The Revenge of the deplorables” highlights how the political classes in Europe and the U.S. have lost touch with the people they represent, and often express contempt for sections of the electorate: “You could put half of Trump’s supporters into what I call the basket of deplorables. Right? The racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, Islamophobic-you name it...” (Hillary Clinton, September 2016.)  Surveys by Pew Research, Gallup, Eurobarometer, the World Values Survey, and others, document a growing deficit of trust in political elites. That is, distrust in government, political parties, politicians, the media, etc. According to Pew, only 19% of Americans trust government to do the right thing “always or most of the time.” This erosion of public trust is down from 77% in 1964. Today, most Americans (55%) think that ordinary citizens would “do a better job of solving problems” than elected officials.  The Index draws on the June 2016 Brexit vote in Britain and the November U.S. election to make the case that both votes represented a rebellion against out-of- touch-elites. The votes show that “society’s marginalized and forgotten voters, often working class and blue collar, do not share the same values as the dominant political elite...”  However, many in the leftist political elites consider the Brexit vote and the election of Mr. Trump “nothing more than outbursts of primal emotions and visceral expressions of narrow-minded nationalism.” Instead of seeking to understand the causes of the popular backlash against the political establishment, the elites have sought to delegitimize the Brexit and Trump outcomes by disparaging the values of those who supported them.  The leftist political elites fail to see anything encouraging in the increased political engagement of ordinary people. Some have even questioned whether ordinary citizens should be trusted to participate in important decisions such as the United Kingdom’s membership in the European Union. To them, increased popular participation is a threat to democracy.  Yes, the Founding Fathers, mindful of the turbulent Roman and Greek experiences, were fearful of democracy. But they also understood that the cause of disagreements is freedom itself; in Madison’s words: “Liberty is to faction, what air is to fire.” The backlash against political elites is not a threat, but a vindication of democracy.  The answer to what has been called a “democracy recession” is not anti- democratic measures. Democracies do not end, as Mr. Sullivan argues, when they become “too democratic.” Democracies falter when the people are excluded. Please let us know if you  this article. We welcome your feedback. Abrazos, Lily & José (click on the name to email Lily or Jose) José Azel, Ph.D. José Azel left Cuba in 1961 as a 13 year-old political exile in what has been dubbed Operation Pedro Pan - the largest unaccompanied child refugee movement in the history of the Western Hemisphere.   He is currently dedicated to the in-depth analyses of Cuba's economic, social and political state, with a keen interest in post-Castro-Cuba strategies. Dr. Azel was a Senior Scholar at the Institute for Cuban and Cuban-American Studies (ICCAS) at the University of Miami, Jose Azel has published extensively on Cuba related topics. In 2012 and 2015, Dr. Azel testified in the U.S. Congress on U.S.-Cuba Policy, and U.S. National Security.  He is a frequent speaker and commentator on these and related topics on local, national and international media.  He holds undergraduate and masters degrees in business administration and a Ph.D. in International Affairs from the University of Miami. José along with his wife Lily are avid skiers and adventure travelers.  In recent years they have climbed Grand Teton in Wyoming, trekked Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania and Machu Pichu in Peru.  They have also hiked in Tibet and in the Himalayas to Mt. Everest Base Camp. They cycled St. James Way (El Camino de Santiago de Compostela) and cycled alongside the Danube from Germany to Hungary and throughout southern France.  They have scuba dived in the Bay Islands off the Honduran coast and in the Galapagos Islands. Most recently, they rafted for 17 days 220 miles in the Grand Canyon.  Their adventurers are normally dedicated to raise funds for causes that are dear to them.  Watch Joe & Lily summit Kilimanjaro. Books by Dr. José Azel José Azel’s writings are touched with the wisdom of a master, and the charm of an excellent communicator. Anyone who wishes to understand why countries do, or do not, progress will find in this book the best explanations. And, from these readings emerge numerous inferences: How and why do the good intentions of leftist collectivism lead countries to hell? Why is liberty not a sub product of prosperity, but rather one of its causes? If it was in my power, this work would be required reading for all college and university students, and I would also recommend its reading to all politicians, journalists, and policymakers. With his writings Azel accomplishes what was achieved in France by Frédéric Bastiat, and in the United States by Henry Hazlitt: Azel brings together common sense with intelligent observation, and academic substance. Stupendous, Carlos Alberto Montaner                                                                    BUY NOW Los escritos de José Azel están tocados por la sabiduría de un maestro y la amenidad de un excelente comunicador. Cualquiera que desee entender por qué los países progresan, o no, encontrará en este libro las mejores explicaciones. De estas lecturas surgen numerosas inferencias: ¿Cómo y por qué las buenas intenciones del colectivismo de izquierda llevan a los países al infierno? ¿Por qué la libertad no es un subproducto de la prosperidad, sino una de sus causas? Si estuviera en mis manos, esta obra sería de obligada lectura de todos los estudiantes universitarios, pero además, le recomendaría su lectura a todos los políticos, periodistas y policy makers. Con sus escritos Azel logra lo que Frédéric Bastiat consiguiera en Francia y Henry Hazlitt en Estados Unidos: aunar el sentido común, la observación inteligente y la enjundia académica. Estupendo. Carlos Alberto Montaner                                                            Compre Aqui "Liberty for beginners is much more than what the title promises. It is eighty themes touched with the wisdom of a master, and the charm of an excellent communicator. Anyone that wishes to understand why countries do, or do not progress, will find in this book the best explanations. Stupendous" Carlos Alberto Montaner Buy Now "Libertad para novatos es mucho más de lo que promete el título. Son ochenta temas tocados con la sabiduría de un maestro y la amenidad de un excelente comunicador. Cualquier adulto que desee saber por qué progresan o se estancan los pueblos aquí encontrará las mejores explicaciones. Estupendo." Carlos Alberto Montaner Compre Aqui In Reflections on Freedom, José Azel brings together a collection of his columns published in prestigious newspapers.  Each article reveals his heartfelt and personal awareness of the importance of freedom in our lives.  They are his reflections after nearly sixty years of living and learning as a Cuban outside Cuba. In what has become his stylistic trademark, Professor Azel brilliantly introduces complex topics in brief journalistic articles. Buy Now En Reflexiones sobre la libertad José Azel reúne una colección de sus columnas publicadas en prestigiosos periódicos. Cada artículo revela su percepción sincera y personal de la importancia de la libertad en nuestras vidas. Son sus reflexiones después de casi sesenta años viviendo y aprendiendo como cubano fuera de Cuba.  En lo que ha resultado ser característica distintiva de sus artículos, el Profesor Azel introduce con brillantez complejos temas en  breves artículos de carácter periodístico. Compre Aqui Mañana in Cuba is a comprehensive analysis of contemporary Cuba with an incisive perspective of the Cuban frame of mind and its relevancy for Cuba's future.