Friend of Democracy,
I tend to see the glass as half full, not half empty.
If I miss the connecting train, I'm happy the next one will leave in half an hour. If I lose a hundred euros, I think about how that might make someone else happy.
Such an attitude makes life easier (what's the point of getting upset about things you can‘t change?).
But there is another reason why I prefer to see the glass half full. A political one.
Because the enemies of democracy always see the glass as half-empty. Actually, they often even claim it's empty.
It‘s the business model of extremists.
The railway company, immigration, politics in general—everywhere, they see the negative. Sentiment is being stirred against democracy. Those at the top aren't getting it done, they say. Something fundamental needs to change, they say.
We know they're wrong.
Living in a democracy is the best thing that can happen. Not everything in it is perfect. But democracy holds the key to solving problems.
This key is political competition.
If the people are dissatisfied with their government's policies, they elect a new one, and that new one has the chance to do better.
Populists and authoritarian regimes, on the other hand, seek to eliminate this core of democracy.
They promise the moon and the stars. People won't have to worry about anything anymore if they come to power, they say. Not even voting, some even say bluntly. Because then the best of all policies will already be in power. So, change won't be necessary.
Of course, that's not the case.
Good politics is born out of the fact that politicians and their politics can potentially be voted out. That encourages politicians to improve. In this respect, politics functions no differently than a well-working market economy.
It's competition that puts (the voting) people first.
Of course, the outcome of competition is not always flawless in democracy (again, politics is no different from the market economy). But most of the time, it is much better than what the doomsayers would have us believe. Let's not let them convince us that a half-full glass of water is less than half full.
See you in Democracy,
Johannes Eber