This nails the core problem with how these terms get thrown around in arguments. The parenting analogy really worked for me, like how my own family keeps tweaking things overtime while the goal stays the same. The Electoral College example is key here beccause it shows the republic's checks actually functioning, not as anti-democratic but as a safegard against regional tyranny when properly used. Most people dunno that Lincoln used both terms together deliberately.
Phil, we have an autocratic president who is jailing political dissidents. (See Tufts University student kidnapped/jailed by our government for an op-ed in a student newspaper.) This overwritten piece sanitizes this county’s extremely dire predicament. What do you actually believe, Phil? Just say it. These pseudo-academic essays are maddening.
Thanks for your comment — I understand where your frustration comes from. I share your worry that our country is moving in a dangerous direction. I do believe the current administration is dragging the nation toward autocratic rule, with all the damage that brings to liberty, checks and balances, and equal justice under law.
That’s exactly why I wrote this piece. To elect the next president, we all need to vote for someone who truly believes in both the republic and democracy — and recognizes that they’re not opposing ideas but parts of the same American promise. The goal was to strip away the false divide between those words so we can see what actually unites us.
If we can agree on that foundation, we don’t have to waste energy fighting each other over labels while the real threats to fair representation continue unchecked. We have many, many more battles ahead over the next three years, and we’ll need both clarity and unity to win them.
Phil, thanks for the thoughtful reply, and I apologize for my grumpy comment. I’m upset by the lawlessness of the Trump administration (see today’s shooting by a masked federal agent) but shouldn’t have taken it out on you. Your piece was well-written and accurate , but I think more direct commentary is needed during this unfortunate moment.
This nails the core problem with how these terms get thrown around in arguments. The parenting analogy really worked for me, like how my own family keeps tweaking things overtime while the goal stays the same. The Electoral College example is key here beccause it shows the republic's checks actually functioning, not as anti-democratic but as a safegard against regional tyranny when properly used. Most people dunno that Lincoln used both terms together deliberately.
Thank you to both the author and the publisher (editor) for this clarifying essay.
Phil, we have an autocratic president who is jailing political dissidents. (See Tufts University student kidnapped/jailed by our government for an op-ed in a student newspaper.) This overwritten piece sanitizes this county’s extremely dire predicament. What do you actually believe, Phil? Just say it. These pseudo-academic essays are maddening.
Thanks for your comment — I understand where your frustration comes from. I share your worry that our country is moving in a dangerous direction. I do believe the current administration is dragging the nation toward autocratic rule, with all the damage that brings to liberty, checks and balances, and equal justice under law.
That’s exactly why I wrote this piece. To elect the next president, we all need to vote for someone who truly believes in both the republic and democracy — and recognizes that they’re not opposing ideas but parts of the same American promise. The goal was to strip away the false divide between those words so we can see what actually unites us.
If we can agree on that foundation, we don’t have to waste energy fighting each other over labels while the real threats to fair representation continue unchecked. We have many, many more battles ahead over the next three years, and we’ll need both clarity and unity to win them.
Phil, thanks for the thoughtful reply, and I apologize for my grumpy comment. I’m upset by the lawlessness of the Trump administration (see today’s shooting by a masked federal agent) but shouldn’t have taken it out on you. Your piece was well-written and accurate , but I think more direct commentary is needed during this unfortunate moment.
And by “unfortunate moment,” I mean f’d up moment.