republic
1 a (1) : a government having a chief of state who is not a monarch and who in modern times is usually a president (2) : a political unit (as a nation) having such a form of government b (1) : a government in which supreme power resides in a body of citizens entitled to vote and is exercised by elected officers and representatives responsible to them and governing according to law (2) : a political unit (as a nation) having such a form of government
democracy
1 a : government by the people; especially : rule of the majority b : a government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or indirectly through a system of representation usually involving periodically held free elections
I find the distinction be almost meaningless... esoteric may be the right word. Obviously if one goes strictly by definition 1 a (1) of republic, a republic does not have to be a democracy. If one goes by definition 1 b (1) of republic their essentially the same.
In practice, if elected officials do just about whatever they want once in office, irregardless of the will of the majority of people, it's hard to see how it's a true democracy. An, allowed by the people, plutocracy is what we have here, since one must attain a significant degree of wealth to get noticed, get on a ballot, etc.
Both major political parties are whorses of a different color, but they're both horses. It's one of the reasons why no noticeable improvement occurs.
Tom C.
When this definitions were made there was not a power as the mass-media of today which is the strongest power in contemporary world. And it is not public! It is proprietary...
luben
