Oh yes, "Democracy & Freedom" has taken root from time to time with limited success. From the heady beginnings of any newly grafted 'democracy', installed with the best of intentions, there is an easily charted progression from openness, and personal freedom, always, without exception to more 'control' and 'regulation' of people, leading finally to a diminishment of freedoms, loss of personal rights and personal deprivation.
It is inevitable that more 'conservative', selfish elements of any democracy always seek ways to 'protect' their own, mercenary interests at the expense of personal rights and freedoms. This culture is termed 'capitalism', and the rights of 'capital' and 'property' become co-equal and then soon begin to take precedence over the rights of humans. Associations of more aggressive individuals gather more and more property and capital under their control, seeking to protect it from others who may want or need it for survival.
The aggressives - today's NEO-CONSERVATIVES - always justify aggressions as their 'right' under the hallowed principles of 'democracy and freedom' and of course, 'capitalism'. No matter that they are crushing the 'rights' of other, less clever or aggressive individuals, often depriving and starving them in the process. That too, they consider as their 'right' under democracy and 'the capitalist system'.
Aggressive capitalists band together with the common interest of protecting 'property'. They use their wealth to 'buy' more control and regulation in their favor, until finally, the democracy transmogrifies into a capitalist 'corportocracy' with which much of the modern world is now afflicted. From corportocracy it is but one small step to true Fascism. At that point there is no longer any need to camouflage actions under the banner of 'democracy' and the true colors often then emerge. We have seen this from time to time in history, with the most recent being in Nazi Germany in the 1920's and 40's. We are pretty close to this now in the United States.
Fortunately for humankind, a 'tipping point' has always been reached where humanity reasserts its control, rounds up all the Fascists and hangs them, and reestablishes true democracy.
That is still ahead of us in the year 2007. When it happens, a new 'democracy' will take root for a while, until the next culture of greedy, selfish aggressives comes along and history repeats itself.
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