democracy

Democracy is a political concept referring to a society administered by a democratic government, in which all adult citizens have a say in social and political decisions that affect the country. It is widely viewed as the most fair and progressive form of government, since it reflects the will of the majority, while also granting and protecting the rights of minorities.

The way by which individuals can express their will regarding initiatives that affect everyone is voting. A distinction is made between direct democracies and representative democracies. In direct democracies, people vote on policies directly, while in representative democracies, the people elect a number of representatives (which constitute the country's legislature) who then vote on policy initiatives in the name of the people. However, many representative democracies also allow for three forms of direct political action on the part of the people, namely referendum, citizens' initiative and recall.

The referendum is a direct vote in which the electorate is asked to accept or reject a specific proposal. The citizens' imitative is a petition signed by a certain number of registered voters that can eventually force a public vote, or referendum. A recall is a political procedure by which registered voters can remove an elected official from service before their term has expired. Recalls are also initiated via petition.

You'll find bloggers talking about democracy at sites like economist.com and dailycaller.com.

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Original Technorati articles tagged “democracy”

• in Politics
  Pressure for Military Intervention in Syria Grows
  Assad Seems To Underestimate Opposition to his Regime
  by Mozart99 / on Jan 15, 2012
• in Politics
  Is the Death of the Lokpal Good Riddance or Bad Rubbish for Indian Democracy?
  What broke the fun was the objection Mamta Banerjee raised to a clause permitting the central government to enact anti corruption laws for the states, a promise extracted by Anna Hazare from a parliament under duress which it has no power to deliver.
  by forgevalley / on Dec 30, 2011
• in Politics
  India’s Lokpal – Shooting His Own Foot With Democracy?
  What is extra ordinary about the whole democratic event which is unfolding in India is the question of how much influence a mass agitation outside can wield on the elected representatives engaged in legislation inside the parliament
  by forgevalley / on Dec 28, 2011

Latest blogosphere posts tagged “democracy”

 

• Egyptians Use Graffiti to Reclaim Streets (Slide Show)

  
  Politics Blog — Authority: 130
  Two children walk past graffiti on a wall in Cairo, Egypt in late december. by AYA BATRAWY, Associated Press CAIRO (AP) — The conflict between Egypt’s ruling military and pro-democracy protesters isn’t just on the streets of Cairo, it’s on the walls as well, as graffiti artists from each side duel it out with ...
  6 hours ago

• Opportunity for constitutional reform in Jamaica

  
  IntLawGrrls — Authority: 122
  At her swearing-in ceremony as Jamaica’s seventh Prime Minister a few weeks ago, Portia Simpson Miller (right) announced her government’s intention to begin the process of removing all ties with the British monarchy to make Jamaica an independent republic. (Prior IntLawGrrls post ) A product of the ...
  8 hours ago

• The new Twitter censorship policy might not be as bad as it looks

  
  Writing Cave — Authority: 89
  There is lots of buzz on the Internet regarding the recent announcement by Twitter that it would be blocking certain tweets in certain countries, although the same tweets will be available in the countries outside of the jurisdiction of those countries wanting to block that particular content. In the beginning, as ...
  10 hours ago

• The concept of local governments emerged in 18th and 19th centuries

  
  Light of Peace — Authority: 105
  Modern system of local government emerged in the 18 th and 19 th centuries. Their units were the administrative units of former monarchies which were being transformed into modern nation-states. In the 20 th century two new types of local political systems developed, both resulting from major political upheavals. ...
  1 day ago

• The Cold War Minute for January 28

  
  The Cold War Minute — Authority: 110
  BerlinBrigade.com presents The Cold War Minute: January 28 edition. In this episode, we talk about Canada, Ronald Reagan, Energy Crisis, Red Brigade, Space Shuttle Challenger You can also download the todays episode of The Cold War Minute by right clicking and saving here for January 28 KEYWORDS: • ...
  1 day ago

• Ancient Greece: Athenian Democracy, Classroom Poster

  
  Positive Liberty — Authority: 102
  Ancient Greece: Athenian Democracy, Classroom Poster Ancient Greece: Athenian Democracy,Classroom Poster 12″ x 18″ Poster on High Quality heavy 80lb satin cover paper – durable and can stand up to all kinds of abuse and it won’t pucker and wrinkle like others do. This new poster is a PosterEnvy ...
  1 day ago

• Ketuanan Melayu is UMNO’s lifeblood

  
  Din Merican: the Malaysian DJ Blogger — Authority: 426
  January 28,2012 www.freemalaysiakini.com Ketuanan Melayu is UMNO’s lifeblood by Salena Tay@www.freemalaysiatoday.com “This will be a never-ending game of race and religion orchestrated by UMNO. And you can add in the Hang Tuah card, too, unless the rakyat will put a stop to all these unethical abuse ...
  1 day ago

• Peru: Uchuraccay relatives reject MOVADEF

  
  Memory in Latin America — Authority: 403
  (Its the time of year when Peru recalls the killings of eight journalists in Uchuraccay in 1983. Relatives of the victims have spoken of their opposition to MOVADEF, a group linked to Shining Path. The Peruvian journalists assocation ANP has also taken the opportunity to voice its opposition to a bill which could ...
  1 day ago

• Persepolis trial in Tunisia is postponed again

  
  top99news - breaking news from the world top newspapers — Authority: 163
  http://www.guardian.co.uk Persepolis trial in Tunisia is postponed again Trial of Tunisian TV station accused of ‘insulting sacred values’ of Islam for screening Marjane Satrapi’s animated film is adjourned until April following further altercationsA trial of a Tunisian TV station charged with ...
  2 days ago

• Kamal Davar- The goalposts have changed

  
  Techno-Guru - Latest Technology News India, Latest Breaking Bollywood News of India, Online Shopping — Authority: 133
  Of its nearly 65 years of turbulent history, Pakistan has been under the military rule for about 40 years. In recent decades, no civilian government has managed to successfully complete its full five-year tenure. Today, history seems to be at the cusp of repeating itself, as there are high chances of a military ...
  2 days ago

• What is Democracy? (58): A Voice Based Selection Process for Politicians

  
  P.A.P. Blog - Human Rights Etc. — Authority: 112
  Barry White for President It’s both a damning verdict on democracy and a charming play on words: voters apparently use their vote to choose politicians with a certain type of voice (the word “vote” being related to “voice”). More precisely, voters prefer politicians with lower-pitched voices: ...
  2 days ago

• Pups on Parade: EU Obediently Pushes Toward War with Iran

  
  Dr Nasir Khan — Authority: 415
  By Chris Floyd, Empire Burlesque , Jan 23, 2012 This week, the warlords of the West took yet another step toward their long-desired war againt Iran. (Open war, that is; their covert war has been going on for decades — via subversion, terrorism, and proxies like Saddam Hussein.) On Monday, the European Union ...
  2 days ago

• Claim and Counterclaim: Who Is Bombing Damascus?

  
  Paternal Prose — Authority: 146
  A handout picture from the official Syrian News Agency (SANA) shows onlookers gathering on January 6, 2012 at the site of a powerful explosion in the Midan neighbourhood in the heart of Damascus. AFP / Getty Images In the recent past, it wasn’t unusual to hear Syrians (those who dared whisper about politics) say ...
  3 days ago

• Megaupload - a developing story

  
  No quality without security — Authority: 121
  Most of the servers of Megaupload are still ready to become operational again (except probably for those in Holland and the…
  3 days ago

• Poll panel showcases ballot power in R-Day parade (Lead)

  
  Thaindian News — Authority: 534
  New Delhi, Jan 26 (IANS) Amid a grand display of India’s military might, the Election Commission for the first time in the history of Republic Day parade Thursday put on show the power of ballot too, and sought to woo the electorate, particularly youngsters, to come out to vote.The panel marked its first [...]
  3 days ago

• Merkel is correct about Eurozone reforms - But which reforms?

  
  PROTESILAOS STAVROU — Authority: 102
  The policies of Merkel do not align with her rhetoric. Image Source: FlickrIn her speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said among others the following (from euronews):Do we want coherence without ambition? If we do, we will meet somewhere in the middle. Or do we want to see who ...
  3 days ago

• Uganda’s Electoral Politics Remains a Ruse

  
  PoliticalArticles.NET - Blog — Authority: 111
  The duty is on us to repossess our countrys political glory. The challenge calls for daring actions to re-humanize our politics. Electoral politics should not be about demarcation, exclusivity,... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
  4 days ago

• Thailand National Human Rights Commission statement on the “Penal Code Section 112″ (lese Majeste) eng.

  
  democracy for burma — Authority: 127
  View this document on Scribd
  4 days ago

• Aung San Suu Kyi hosts dinner for released 88Generation Student leaders.wmv

  
  democracy for burma — Authority: 127
  [IMG: http://img.youtube.com/vi/DfbSHIxXX-8/2.jpg]
  4 days ago

• The virtues of representative democracy

  
  Obnoxio The Clown — Authority: 99
  I frequently get into debates about democracy with people. In essence, I dont believe in government at all, so I wouldnt believe in democracy anyway. If you have direct democracy with minimum levels of voting mandated for everything, you still wind up with a potentially significant section of the population having to ...
  4 days ago

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