Custom «Liberal Democracy» Essay Paper Sample

Liberal democracy dates back to the 18^th century Europe, where communities were ruled by monarchies or aristocracy. Liberal democracy is subject to classical liberalism, which is a form of governance that advocates for equal rights for all, but most importantly economic freedom. The intent of the framer Adam Smith was using liberal democracy to increase economic strength following urbanization and industrial revolution in Europe through the public being involved in such decisions. Besides, dictators oppose liberal democracy, stating that they are against any public participation, since it would hinder growth, as citizens would request high incentives like equal wealth distribution. Redistribution of wealth would interfere with the monopoly market, where only individuals with economic prowess could trade. The US Constitution supports liberal democracy, which gives power to the public to choose their preferred leaders, amend the existing laws, and ensure economic, social, and political strength and stability. 

Origin and How the Process Works 

The area that needs to be modified is liberal democracy, which originated as a constitutional amendment. The framer Adam Smith sought to amend the Constitution dividing the powers of the US government and providing the public with a voice. The amendments were part of the federal law concept, since it gave powers to the public, while the ruling government retained them as well. Moreover, liberal democracy is a form of government, where the leaders are subject to the rule of law, and the decisions they make are guided by the constitution protecting the rights and freedom of the public. In this case, leaders are constrained by the constitution to make decisions that may damage the rights of the public. The American process serves justice for all citizens whether they are in government or not and through liberal democracy, the minority group can seek justice if it feels that individual decisions affect it negatively. For instance, there may be decisions made against its land, property and tough immigration laws for those seeking asylum in the United States. "Liberal democracy is a regime in which civil rights are provided in addition to electoral and property rights" (Mukand & Rodrik, 2015). Some decisions may inhibit African Americans from investing in property because of their color. For instance, governments can charge high taxes and discourage them from investing. Such individuals can, therefore, choose to seek justice politically through the liberal democracy, which was incepted to help minority groups get justice.

Liberal democracy allowed the public to make any amendments they felt were unfair to them. It is structured to provide equal opportunities for all citizens to vote regardless of color, race, property ownership, or gender. This was made possible following amendments made to allow women and people of color to vote for their leaders' choice. In addition, elections would be free and fair, thus making the political process in the US competitive. Competition arose due to political pluralism characterized by many political parties with different leaders. Under liberal democracy constitution, rule of law was mandatory and equal leadership opportunities through many political parties were available. Furthermore, publicly chosen leaders could amend some laws like high taxes that hindered citizen’s economic freedom. The purpose of such changes was meant to define the democratic character of the state, as it had been structured to favor those in power only. Thus, amendments made helped minority groups get equal opportunities regardless of race, color or gender.

Examination of the Problems

Changes made under liberal democracy took a long time to be implemented, as some elected leaders delayed approving the public demands, despite being protected by the constitution. Liberal democracy is a part of the constitution and laws governing it are open to the public (Dempsey, 2019). Government leaders are expected to establish a structure that favors the implementation of decisions made through liberal democracy in the shortest time possible. Besides, the leaders opposing liberal democracy do not approve federalism, which is a concept involving the fact that elected leaders are subject to public fury and can be impeached if they fail in their professional duties. Liberal democrats are not subject to federalism and thus act in their personal interests and timeline, which may not favor the minority communities to get the change they want. Therefore, opposing elected leaders delayed the public demands, which was a direct contradiction to the US constitution.

The United States has over 300 million citizens thus it is difficult to offer social benefits to all of them, despite liberal democracy guaranteeing equal rights and freedom for all. According to Oliker (2017), the founders of liberalism were not democrats and they cannot change the constitution to increase social benefits. Liberal democracy was established by ideological thinkers stating that each individual deserves better from the government. In this case, the founders believed that people should be able to impeach and remove government leaders they felt were abusing their authorities. For instance, liberal democracy guarantees the right to life and freedom for inmates and when they finish their sentences, the government is expected to offer them social welfare benefits, since it is hard for them to get any employment. However, democratic governments offer little social benefits to ex-inmates, which is against liberal democracy rules guaranteeing fairness and equality to over 300 million US citizens.

Liberal democracy leads to ethnic and religious conflicts, especially in countries that have different cultures and ethnicity. Ethnic conflicts arise due to sharp religious and cultural divisions among citizens. Normal democratic rule guarantees minimal public participation in political decisions, while liberal democracy guarantees public involvement in both economic and political decisions (Ferrín & Kriesi, 2016). Moreover, liberal democracy led to the collapse of the Soviet Union’s offensive rule, where only a few individuals made decisions on behalf of the country. "The Berlin Wall had fallen; the Soviet Union had collapsed; new democracies were emerging throughout Europe, and Russia seemed to be in transition as well" (Galston, 2018).  Ethnic divisions lead to displacing of minority groups and refugees seeking asylum in a country like the US. Thus, liberal democracy does not support laws made by elected leaders with the majority opting to pass laws favoring them personally based on ethnicity and culture and leading to internal conflict.

Modifications and Amendments 

The implementation of the modifications does not need a constitutional amendment, but requires the relevant stakeholders’ implementation of the already set rules and regulations. One of the recommended changes is bureaucracy, which involves the publicly chosen state officials making crucial government decisions, as opposed to previously elected leaders. Bureaucracy has helped democratic governments initiate new liberal rules and policies. In addition, there are elected leaders accused of gross office misconduct, as using state wealth for their personal benefit. Such selfish interests have led to less social benefits for the unemployed, inmates and refugees. Bureaucracy empowers liberal democratic leaders, since the publicly chosen state representative can change the law to favor the liberals. With the help of state officials making crucial decisions for the public, misuse of state resources can be reduced, since there will be regulations against using state funds meant for development. Therefore, following the already set rules can help implement the needed modifications.

Bureaucracy leads to eliminating dictatorship in democratic governments. It will be hard to implement this, but relevant authorities can make short-term goals to encourage new rules and regulations without criticism. Short-term goals lead to more results, since they do not require any major policy changes. Furthermore, bureaucracy will help countries that have a democratic majority rule, for example those without free or fair elections. The change from pre-determined elections to free and fair elections means the transition from dictatorship to democracy. Liberal leaders state that it is easier to negotiate with democratic governments, since a constitution governs them. In this case, such governments are guided by the rules made with the public interest in mind and it is easier to change laws, where the public has a voice, since this helps in the transition of power. Supporters of democracy can help persuade such governments give liberals leadership opportunities to make crucial decisions on behalf of the public. As mentioned earlier, such plans can be short term, since this leads to a more straightforward adaptation of the new rules and regulations through initiating the bureaucracy concept.

Consequences of Modifications: Pros and Cons

Positive Consequences

Liberal democracy is a type of governance that countries require, as it supports capitalism, socialism, and communism. Capitalism in a liberal democratic world allows fair competition for those seeking political positions and for economic purposes as well. Liberal democracy will lead to fair trade when it comes to import and export. Besides, in countries that lack liberal democracy, capitalism, communism and socialism are prohibited, despite them seeking equal opportunities for potential leaders regardless of color, race, or gender. Liberal democratic leaders help improve security and freedom for the public, since the new liberal democratic constitution guides all political and economic activities (Ferrín & Kriesi, 2016). Finally, liberal democracy supports equal competition stating that it has become a necessity in the modern world. Equal competition allows countries to make better goods and provide high-quality services culminating to a better economic position through more profits.

Lack of liberal democracy means unknown market conditions, since there is no economic or political freedom to operate. Before the inception of liberal democratic concept, people had no rights, even in the US only the white people were privileged. Such countries lack the needed tools to implement fair and equal trading platforms, since there is no support from the government. Moreover, the introduction of liberalism leads to support from relevant governments to achieve economic strength. Voluntary participation has led to strong economic markets, as people are happier when they are not coerced to perform their duties well. A free and fair competitive market allows governments to operate smoothly, since there are no entanglements socially or politically. In addition, liberal democracy leads to free and fair elections in counties that have no political freedom (Mudde, 2016). The implementation of strategies like bureaucracy has led to elected officials requiring the approval of the public to pass significant laws guaranteeing that each citizen benefits from them gaining political and economic freedom.

Negative Consequences

Liberal democracy leads to individual freedom, since there are unmoderated rulers. Unmoderated rulers are often led by selfish interests with many aiming to use state resources for personal gain. The unmoderated rule led to the introduction of the liberal democratic constitution that helped set new rules and policies governing liberals. The change was an amendment of the US constitution allowing publicly chosen individuals partner with elected officials to make crucial decisions for them. Furthermore, the liberal democracy was a needed modification, since it led to referendums that improved the quality of leadership among afflicted countries. The liberal constitution led to the public choice theory and traders benefited the most, since they were responsible for drafting rules governing trade. Liberal democracy was established to help improve economies of affected countries. The public was responsible for forming small groups and assign publicly chosen leaders to head them, as well as represent them in government sittings. This is an aspect known as plutocracy that is supported by capitalism seeking economic success through public participation. Thus, the liberal democracy constitution helps modern governments provide the needed financial and social welfare for all relevant stakeholders through eliminating the concept of unmoderated rulers.

Conclusion

Liberal democracy is the best form of governance that countries need in the modern world. Through the liberal democratic constitution, the public can choose their preferred leaders, as the US constitution supports them. Elections are free and fair in a liberal democratic world, since there are many leaders to choose from based on public opinion. Publicly elected leaders are accountable for their actions and can be impeached if they fail in their duties. However, liberal democracy causes ethnic and religious conflicts in the states that have different cultures and ethnicity. Bureaucracy is a liberal democracy modification that can help reduce such conflicts through supporting capitalism, socialism, and communism. The purpose of governance is minimizing conflicts and it can be achieved through liberal democracy.