It’s Democrazy, Stupid!

Politics is the gentle art of getting votes from the poor and campaign funds from the rich, by promising to protect each from the other.

– Oscar Ameringer

I often lament the utter ignorance prevalent when people worldwide willingly participate in their countries’ democratic election cycles. However, it is bewildering to me how the more I expose how democracy has become an illusion, a systemic scam, the more people fall for it, and willingly so.

Born in South Africa under the apartheid system, I was not allowed to participate in or vote in an inclusive democracy. When apartheid eventually crumbled, I was ecstatic to exercise my much-lauded democratic right. That soon turned into disillusionment, as I abstained for many years. I was then persuaded to vote again to express my disgust by spoiling the ballot sheet but eventually stopped altogether.

I now choose to exclude myself entirely from what is a routine hustle. I’ve heard all the tiresome arguments for why my position is misguided. I still prefer to remain unsoiled.

Increasingly, governments around the world are moving towards nationalism of one kind or another and/or fascism and right-wing extremism. Pick any election held globally recently, and the trend will become noticeable. There is no need for me to single any county out.

Democracy was supposed to be a system under which state power is vested in the people who exercise this responsibility through their duly elected representatives. Somehow, this became contaminated, and the people have either abrogated their responsibility or had it cunningly wrested from them.

Politics has always been corrupt. People are well aware of this. Yet, they willingly expose themselves to becoming complicit in the fraud. Either politicians are becoming increasingly crafty, or people are becoming too easily manipulated or a combination of gullible and desperate.

I’m leaning towards the latter.

Political parties spend obscene amounts of money on television commercials and other forms of advertisement to sway voters in their favour. These adverts prey on insecurities and fears (often manufactured) and don’t even have to be honest. In the recent US elections, it was reported that the Democratic Party raised over $1 billion for their campaign, a sizeable portion of which will be used for advertising.

Ironically, the people the funds are meant to influence are significantly donated by the same people. It’s a sick scheme where the people willingly contribute cash to their own victimization. It’s also repellant on a humanitarian level that many of these people who are so generous to politicians are not as gracious to charitable concerns.

The whole pitiful mess accentuates another human trait – selfishness.

On the global stage, we’re often forced to watch helplessly as democracy is perverted on an outlandish scale to serve the corrupt interests of a few wealthy nations, the USA, in particular. At the UN, five countries have the right to veto resolutions that have far-reaching consequences for other nations.

Just last week, on yet another ceasefire resolution proposed for the Israeli-Palestine “war,” the US stood alone in voting against the 14 other nations in the Security Council.

But that’s not the worst of it either.

We’re told that the only democracy in the Middle East is Israel. It’s meant to sweeten the bitter genocide pill that we are expected to swallow without resisting. Apparently genocide is okay… if a democracy is doing it.

US Senator Lindsey Graham wants to sanction the International Criminal Court and any ally for issuing arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense chief Yoav Gallant. This is in defiance of the international democratic order.

We’re told that American uber-democracy is untouchable. Graham beligerently declared that:

We cannot let the world believe for a moment that this is a legitimate exercise of jurisdiction by the Court against Israel because to do so means we could be next.

Meanwhile, Graham’s warmongering colleague, Senator Tom Cotton, threatened to invade The Hague if the arrest warrants were executed. He, like many others in the US, has delusions about the invincibility of American uber-democracy.

On a lighter note, democracy does provide the opportunity for comic relief while providing rare glimpses of its fading allure.

Recently, I came across a channel on YouTube called thejuicemedia, which creates co-called, honest government adverts. The parodies are scathing yet hilarious but ultimately on point. The following sketch on democracy was remarkably poignant yet accurate:

While the USA rightfully receives the brunt of criticism for its blatant hypocrisy about democracy, one can find hilarious adverts for many other countries that are also pretenders. The UK, Canada, and New Zealand are not spared. I encourage you to watch the other videos; they will make you smile, at the very least.

Just a few short years ago, I remember thinking that New Zealand had struck gold with Jacinda Adern as Prime Minister. Banning automatic weapons and introducing stricter firearm laws as a direct response to the Christchurch mosque shootings showed great courage in a world where gun nutters have enormous influence. She also resigned to focus on her private life. This last act is also out of character for most politicians who hang onto power at all costs.

Staying with New Zealand, a young Maori politician has been making waves there recently. Hana-Rawhiti Kareariki Maipi-Clarke became a member of Parliament last year at the age of 20. She caused a stir when she performed the traditional Maori haka during her maiden speech in Parliament. It was a breath of fresh air in a world of stuffy politicking.

Just last week, Maipi-Clarke repeated that feat when protesting the passing of a controversial law that would renege on an already-established agreement between Indigenous Māori and the British Crown.

While this is refreshing to witness, I’m afraid it’s only a matter of time before she, too, becomes corrupted. Remember the youngest darling of the liberal movement in the US, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who crossed over to the dark side recently when she closed ranks with the Democrats to lie about a ceasefire? I know it sounds cynical. However, nothing corrupts like absolute power, and politics reeks of it.