FALLACIES

Press, Volume LXVII, Issue 20198, 28 March 1931, Page 14

FALLACIES

XXXII.—(THAT ,NBW ZEALAND yMk DEMOCRACY. , , . .|B ■ : imiia» goa «h», raws.) ' -[By Pbokbssobß. B. Mpbfht.3

, . 'A 1 -jp* • Av'' - ■:: i."! •. • jfevfZealand prides Itself intensely on tlje fact that it is a democracy, arid ii> is jiot unusual for policies to be defended on. the. ground-that .they are j{' er attacked- on the ground that they are "undemocratic," without any other argument being Adduced. These vague expressions completely beg .the .-question, and .examination shows that* the application of the expression democracy to NeW Zealand -political conditions iis quite fallacious, if the term is understood j[n the-sense that our political , system is > such - that, .the views of the - majority of' eitizeny on political-.affairs are crystallised into action* We, have adult .suffrage, but that is an entirely different matter; Taken literally-the term'democracy . | means government by the ■ a whole, and in ancient Greece- there i was" some correspondence to this state of affairs. This Is-of course impossible in -modem . conditions, --where numbers are so l#rge that the popular will cpn be exercised " only through . delegated representatives/ . It i$ Jtias Parliamenpower that "stultifies * democracy, -and turps it, from- an .expression .of ihe. will of the people, into a system by-which our political bosses ,instead of being self- . selected, are selected by the accidents of the. voting- system on ipsues-Jihat-are/ usually of "a confused -nature and bfi : secondary importance. . ' z : It.is true that ultimate power resides in the mass of voters, but only negative sense;. It is not true that the deliberate will of the majority is translated into action ,by the Illative actions of representatives elect-, ed for that purpose; Owing to defects in the electoral machinery, it is very rarely, and that" only by accident, that the division of Party strength in Parr, liament. approximately corresponds to

the Party strength Bhowa IjJlra| power in tie constituencies; TfjfgS not unusual. for i6presehtatl«gß elected by a minority of ys||9 constituency, and' for a PartyflH a majority in the House in a minority among the vol^BS In any case politics by the Party machine, and ***M| are usually selected and foiswm the electorates by small, - growl partisans; r while policies -axipjH -mined bytParty Caucuses,-egtl| .•within Caucuses,' and The confeMM action to 1 acceptance or IfejigßttjH platform en bloc, and owm&9| confusion# of ■■•issues -iff" - thfl?fiH| State maybe fofted - Party particnl^^ssue r qpposqfere to its vjewß on some other ;ißrojjßjfj crosscurrents '"m- pofiticaE ffijjgM pletely stultify the dectdriil ve29j an expression-of -the will of even .if it can be assumed »mj majoiityofthe electors really |||S definite views'-on-Ttobst qnest&>il|| haps a dubious-assumption. ,3s«|j remedy the„ elector fted is to put one Party ousj|j| otheif ini - and 'his? i of dtaH - is restricted to what is affeKmKg £ may think: "A: plagiie on Houses!" ; TrotTie : *ia3 iio choice ia£ practice.;. • Ife. at inost, two or 'tHreajMH tive bosses, and their policy ia'«ai largely outside'his control, if not m .tbeory. -* - udjjSH Only in times of grave , ffi|| emergency does the popula£?||j|| come an irresiStEblef bver-ridiag'Ti that;isj precisely atrfche rare/raw! in, pur political life cratio systcm 'as. it is: •BBuaßyz-al