And it isn’t even directly about Donald Trump. Or then again maybe it is.
Across numerous countries, including Australia, Britain, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Sweden and the United States, the percentage of people who say it is “essential” to live in a democracy has plummeted, and it is especially low among younger generations.
— Amanda Taub, How Stable Are Democracies? ‘Warning Signs Are Flashing Red’
This graph says it all:
I’d like to see the underlying survey, and dig into the questions a bit. I was born in 1979 and find it bordering on impossible to believe that 3 out of 4 of my age group don’t find democracy to be an essential part of living in the United States.
I feel like this is the sort of thing that can be influenced by phrasing and differences in the way that the researcher and the participants see the world. The researcher could be asking about how essential it is to live in a democracy thinking that “living in a democracy” refers to your permanent-life-long home. Whereas the participant could just as easily be thinking, “China is not a democracy, but it would be cool to live there for a year!” – in which case, no, living in a democracy is not “essential,” but it also doesn’t speak in any way to the strength of American democracy.
Still, the guy may have a point even if that graph is probably not believable.
http://www.journalofdemocracy.org/article/danger-deconsolidation-democratic-disconnect
Unfortunately the above doesn’t answer “Just me”‘s question.
This is pretty horrifying stuff. I had hoped to live in a Democracy one day, and it looks like the chances of that are dwindling (the US is more an ersatz Democracy, since it doesn’t follow a one person one vote rule).