"Republic" and "democracy" aren't "two different kinds of government". They describe two different things *about* a government.
-
-
Replying to @arthur_affect
"Republic" means that the legitimacy of the government is perceived to come from the people. ("Res publica", "of the public")
1 reply 6 retweets 15 likes -
Replying to @arthur_affect
"Democracy" means that the actual decision-making power of the government is tied to the people ("demos", people, "kratos", power)
1 reply 7 retweets 18 likes -
Replying to @arthur_affect
You can be a democracy and not a republic -- that's what a constitutional monarchy like the UK is (legitimacy still comes from the crown)
1 reply 4 retweets 13 likes -
Replying to @arthur_affect
You can be a republic and not a democracy -- the USSR was a republic, with the ruling party acting as a vanguard on the people's behalf
1 reply 3 retweets 12 likes -
Replying to @arthur_affect
The US is supposed to be both -- a democratic republic
1 reply 3 retweets 15 likes
People who say "democracy" means direct democracy and "republic" means representative democracy are just wrong. That's a recent invention
Loading seems to be taking a while.
Twitter may be over capacity or experiencing a momentary hiccup. Try again or visit Twitter Status for more information.