On Obama: Democracy Check VS Democracy Challenge

Yesterday's internets were abuzz and still are resonating with Obama's swift victory in U.S. Presidential election. It could be debated if and how historic and groundbreaking the event was, its symbolism and meaning, causes and contributors to it. While I do agree that those questions deserve their rightful attention, another not often enough mentioned assortment of thoughts comes to my mind - ironically, a view that I deem to be the most important one if we are to learn any lesson from human history in order to avoid repeating them...

Shaking off all the hype about continuity, hope and change, and shifting focus from the two main presidential candidates onto the grander voting plane which includes libertarians and other walkers on the edges of U.S. political landscape, what we bore witness to and almost one hundred and fifty million individuals participated in by casting their votes was in essence a simple and effective democracy check.

The election itself proved that the voters - even though I would not go so far as to claim that all groups of voters fall into this category (and this could be a heavily debated issue) - still believe in the electoral process and recognize its significance, believe in their own role in it and most importantly, their decisions are also founded on inclusive democratic principles.

Therefore it could be labeled as a minor thing, its only function being performing a check that on the most important of mechanisms of democracy, voting, and making sure that it is still working.

Up to this point there hasn't been any major deflection from the mainstream focus: the democracy check that I have briefly described here has been highlighted periodically since the election and got its spotlight in the media. However, what has failed to appear on the importance radar was the democracy challenge, wherein challenge does not mean the dire economic prospects that Obama is facing, neither the difficulties he will encounter should he attempt to enforce whatever change-promising policy of his.
In fact, talking about the hard tasks awaiting Obama when compared to the stakes of the real Challenge is being naive if not downright irresponsible neglection of far more important, even crucial facts and might be challenging in its own limited way but really is a faux challenge.


Democracy challenge is simply put a part which chronologically follows the check and is far more difficult to overcome (imagine an iceberg where its tip is check and what lies beneath in the ice-cold water is the challenge). In fact, it is here where democracy fails most of the time, at the very breaking point of benefits of such a rule, a point where the slope becomes too steep for democracy to continue climbing and each attempt to push the limit can only cause a fall far below.

Take a look at any number of regimes that climbed to power with promises that turned out to be empty and hence a disappointment for the voting populace which translated to a failure of democracy to them, causing a downturn in political culture, passive attitude and eventual rise of support for non-democratic rule.

This outcome applies to established democracies with a long democratic tradition while transitional and newborn democracies have much more abrupt and dire consequences to face, although the outcome is essentially the same in both cases - fall of democratic rule.
Autocrats and tyrants, extreme ideologies and personality cults thriving under their reign, their tightly clenched fist basking in gloomy effects of repression as evaporation of freedoms and pillaging of domestic finances bring the country to war and eventually down its knees.
This pattern has been observed continuously throughout history, and while the tyrants still rule in such a cyclical fashion, one after another, a properly functioning democracy at least puts an end to this vicious cycle.

To conclude my thoughts before wandering even further astray, electing Obama was only a minor step for democracy compared to the one that is waiting ahead.

And that is especially because power corrupts, as my anarchist view goes.... and absolute power corrupts absolutely, which is yet another two-edge sword for Obama and Democratic majority Congress.
My thoughts may seem grim but my hopes remain high, hopes of meeting the real Challenge face to face and taking a stand against it. Even if it fails, the indestructible seed of human hope will survive, ready to take root when the old memories are washed away.

*playing Bob Dylan's Hurricane*