<br><br><div class="gmail_quote">On Tue, Dec 18, 2012 at 5:18 PM, Norbert Bollow <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:nb@bollow.ch" target="_blank">nb@bollow.ch</a>></span> wrote:<br><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex">
<br>
> read all about it here:<br>
> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democracy_Index" target="_blank">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democracy_Index</a><br>
<br>
So unless someone points out flaws that I have missed, I'll dismiss the<br>
possibility of the correlation with democracy not being real but an<br>
artifact caused by invalid methodology in the determination of<br>
"democracy".<br></blockquote><div><br>The notion of a Democracy INDEX consisting of <i>weighted averages</i> is flawed. A weighted <i>average</i>, by its very nature, allows conditions that defeat a core definitional requirement for democracy to nevertheless result in a passing, but degraded, democracy grade. Only if democracy were defined by such a point system in which high grades in one or more areas could make up for failing grades in one or more areas would such a weighted average index not be a flawed assessment. <br>
<br>One sociocultural (but non-legal and non-rights based) definition of democracy is that it is a "habit of the heart" in that the democratic spirit exhibits a willingness to work with others cooperatively, a willingness to speak and to listen, and so forth. This definition <i>is not really one of democracy, but of a certain view of the democratic spirit</i>. This spirit can survive long after democracy itself is long dead, and can also presage a resurgence of democracy as a political system as a culture gears up with democratic values. <br>
<br>A real measure of democracy would have to have core measurements that have clear cut failing points at which the country as a whole fails to be democratic. The index appears to be willing to extend the name of "democratic" to "flawed democracies" and even "hybrid democracies." A mule is a hybrid of a female horse and a male ass (donkey), but is very rarely called a "hybrid horse." Apparently, the authors of the Democracy Index would call mules "hybrid horses" since the horse is the animal with the better reputation, but mules are still not horses.<br>
<br>The Democracy Index basically creates work for a bunch of unnamed experts when the question of whether a country is democratic or not, even though contested, is clearly within the grasp of any person wishing to reasonably inform themselves on and come to their own opinion. In the end, that's what democracy's about, not about experts telling us what to think about countries, like the Democracy Index's experts do.<br>
<br>Paul Lehto, J.D.<br><br></div><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex">
<br>
The big question is of course what the causalities are...<br>
<br>
Greetings,<br>
Norbert<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>____________________________________________________________<br>
You received this message as a subscriber on the list:<br>
<a href="mailto:governance@lists.igcaucus.org" target="_blank">governance@lists.igcaucus.org</a><br>
To be removed from the list, visit:<br>
<a href="http://www.igcaucus.org/unsubscribing" target="_blank">http://www.igcaucus.org/unsubscribing</a><br>
<br>
For all other list information and functions, see:<br>
<a href="http://lists.igcaucus.org/info/governance" target="_blank">http://lists.igcaucus.org/info/governance</a><br>
To edit your profile and to find the IGC's charter, see:<br>
<a href="http://www.igcaucus.org/" target="_blank">http://www.igcaucus.org/</a><br>
<br>
Translate this email: <a href="http://translate.google.com/translate_t" target="_blank">http://translate.google.com/translate_t</a><br>
<br></blockquote></div><br><br clear="all"><br>-- <br>Paul R Lehto, J.D.<br>P.O. Box 1 <br>Ishpeming, MI 49849 <br><a href="mailto:lehto.paul@gmail.com" target="_blank">lehto.paul@gmail.com</a><br><a href="tel:906-204-4965" value="+19062044965" target="_blank">906-204-4965</a> (cell)<br>
<br><br><br><br><br><br>