Originally posted by Ushgarak
Did you know the Constitution doesn't mention anything about an air force either?US understanding of the word 'Democracy; has changed since the Founding Father';s narrow interpretation of it as 'Direct Democracy'."
That's kind of a red herring
It might not specifically mention the Airfoce but it does say the congress can form a military. Air Force is just a label. Democracy is an actual government type.
And an air force is an actual armed force type; the constitution has direct provision for army and navy but not air force.
Things change. The understanding of what makes armed forces changed. The understanding of what a democracy is in the US changed as well. And to remind you, 'Direct Democracy' is not a government type actually used anywhere. The western world consists of representative democracies.
First, that's like saying the air force is forever part of the army because there is no separate provision for it. You can't be that inflexible.
Secondly, that's assuming the Constitution has the absolute right to say what sort of government you are, no matter what sort of government it actually is- that's actually an assumption.
In fact, your government is defined by the criteria you fit. The US fits the criteria of representative democracy.
Similarly, plenty of tinpot countries declare themselves to be democracies by name, but they are not by nature.
So, in short, the US is called a democracy because it IS one.
Re: Why is the word democracy not in the constitution?
Originally posted by Time-Immemorial
Discuss
I thought we've had enough of this subject already. You and I both know, TI, that the reason is because the United States is a republic and not a democracy regardless of what Ush, OV, or anybody else says.
Originally posted by Ushgarak
Did you know the Constitution doesn't mention anything about an air force either?
A few problems with your line of reasoning:
1. Back then, there was no airplanes or helicopters. So why would they mention anything about an air force?
2. The Constitution specifically mentions in article 4 section 4 that the U.S. is a republic.
3. Our nation's Pledge of Allegiance specifically mentions we are a republic as well while saying nothing of "democracy". Then we also have this:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Battle_Hymn_of_the_Republic
I've also posted plenty of links before that show founding fathers thought "democracy" was one of the worst government types. When a woman asked Benjamin Franklin after the signing of the Declaration of Independence "What have you given us, sir?", he replied "A republic... if you can keep it."