Book Review: 'Democracy and How to Solve it'

 Book Review: 'Democracy and How to Solve it', by Predrag Stojadinović.

This is another book that amply supports my views about such issues.

The book begins with a critical look at a foundational idea of democracy. One should be ready to face inconvenience, “because the majority of people believe it is the best option for us”. This, 'though is a textbook definition, amounts to argumentum ad populum fallacy'. A good account of the discussions between the great thinkers of the past, like Socrates, Plato, and many others, point to a gem, which is all the more relevant now. 'Democracy, thus becomes a perfect system for electing unqualified tyrants. Which, one must agree, is the very opposite of its original intent.'

A significant issue is, the book puts, 'if the voters are unable to think critically, they will be inclined to believe the lies of demagogues'. And, the root of the problem is the belief that voting is just some natural ability, an intuition, and not a skill that must be learned and trained. Further discussions identify quite a few steps to correct the situation, like making critical thinking, the default human behavior. The final one looks even more logical, and revolutionary. 'The voters should also first prove their capability to participate in the democratic process, before being allowed to affect everyone else's lives through voting'.