Lately, dissent itself has come under attack. I'm not just referring to the occupant (of the Oval Office) telling his critics to "love it or leave it" (see Watch Ilhan Omar, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ayanna Pressley and Rashida Tlaib Answer Donald Trump’s Racist Lies), I'm talking about the so-called "opposition party" (the Democrats) and their response to internal dissent. I've lost count of the number of "good" Democrats I've heard tell others how we need to unite, and avoid the "circular firing squad." Remember, the congress members Trump criticizes have also come under attack from Nancy Pelosi.
But wasn't small "d" democracy designed to include dissent? Isn't that the point? Without dissent, we have a plutocracy, or an oligarchy, not a democracy. Actually, we pretty much have an oligarchy now, says one Princeton study.
In any case, it would be terrible advice to suggest someone bargaining at a bazaar give up his/her right to walk away from a transaction. Telling them to do so preemptively would be even worse. That gives all the power in the transaction to the merchant (or to the employer, in a labor negotiation).
Nevertheless, the "Democrats" seem to unite around the anti-democratic principle of avoiding dissent, just as much as the love-it-or-leave-it crowd.
But wasn't small "d" democracy designed to include dissent? Isn't that the point? Without dissent, we have a plutocracy, or an oligarchy, not a democracy. Actually, we pretty much have an oligarchy now, says one Princeton study.
In any case, it would be terrible advice to suggest someone bargaining at a bazaar give up his/her right to walk away from a transaction. Telling them to do so preemptively would be even worse. That gives all the power in the transaction to the merchant (or to the employer, in a labor negotiation).
Nevertheless, the "Democrats" seem to unite around the anti-democratic principle of avoiding dissent, just as much as the love-it-or-leave-it crowd.
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