Laura Burke

Democracy
arises out of the notion that those who are equal in any respect are
equal in all respects; because men are equally free, they claim to be
absolutely equal. - Aristotle

Just a note here: We are not all
absolutely equal and that is the flawed perspective of a "democracy".
This is precisely why the Founding Fathers of this nation went to great
lengths to ensure the United States of America as a "Republic," "in
which we stand, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and
justice for all."

Our Founding Fathers saw liberty and freedom
as an inherent right of birth, the single most important element of the
U.S. every born American is entitled to. Liberty and freedom are
entitlements, money and income are "earned" and that is where we are all
not equal but that is exactly what makes America so strong. It is very
easy to spend other people's money in a wasteful manner, just ask
congress. Individuals become wise with their own money and learn to
acquire wealth thereby creating opportunities for others. There is a
very significant difference between a Republic and a Democracy. The
United States is a Republic with a limited form of democracy being the
manner in which we vote - a democratic process.

In a Democracy,
everyone is absolutely equal. This reminds me of one Halloween as a
child when my parents made all of us, their 5 children, put our candy in
a community candy bag meant for everyone. None of us like that except
the littlest one who couldn't trick-or-treat as long as the rest of us
could. Everything I liked in my own bag that had to be put in a
community bag, a democracy of candy, was snatched by the older Vulchers
that pick through the bag 1st. I spent more time trick-or-treating that
year and I wasn't rewarded for my own effort. That was my very first
life lesson in understanding a true democracy and knowing that it SUCKS.
A democracy is not fair to anyone, but it rewards those less efficient
who put forth less effort and energy toward accomplishment and
penalizes those who strive to work hard by putting forth extraordinary
efforts and energy to achieve their goals, efforts and energies those
less ambitious are not willing to put forth. A democracy taints the
meaning of "equal".

In a Republic, the minority perspective and
opinion is treasured because it is the few who pave the way for the
many. It is the few who have vision. It is the few who do not conform
to the status quo. It is the few who knew the Earth was not flat and
challenged the status quo. The few who understood the cosmos and the
working of the universe. The few who took a stand against the status
quo of democracy where everyone is absolutely equal and said, "No, I
don't think so. You people are stupid. Here's why." These people
changed the world. These people, like Christopher Columbus, Galileo,
Aristotle, Archimedes, Einstein, and other brilliant individuals
throughout history were only able to move forward with their brilliant
and innovative ideas because they were DIFFERENT and were not of an
absolutely equal makeup of the bag with everyone else.

This
very significant difference between a democracy and a Republic is WHY
the United States of America was established as a Republic and it is why
this nation has been so strong throughout history.

As Aristotle said: "Republics degrade into Democracies and Democracies degenerate into Despotisms."