The terms
‘Politics’, ‘Politicians’, ‘Policy’, ‘Police’
all originate from POLIS,
the title of city-states in ancient Greece.
Each such city created its own
laws, courts, money, army and foreign policy. There were different Poleis,
each with its own special system
for running the city, for making its laws, its policy, and its army.
Some cities were named after their founders: the Emperor Constantine founded Constantino-polis.
Adriano-polis was named after Adrian.
What a Polis intends to do is called ‘Polis-y’.
“Politics” was the activity of deciding what the Polis should do.
Those who decide policy are called “Politicians”.
People appointed to enforce the laws of the Polis are called ‘Police’.
Nowadays we can replace the term ‘Polis’ by the term ‘Society’,
and "Politics" is the activity of deciding what an entire society should do.
In some Poleis dictators decided what the Polis shold do, in others - the elders or land owners. In Athens all free men (but not women and slaves) decided all policies. This was known as ‘Demos-kratia’ because the “Demos” - the entire community - had "Kratos", namely – authority to decide what the Polis should do..
is a system where representatives of citizens
- not all citizens themselves -
decide all policies.
This is Rule by Representatives not democracy.
Calling such a system “Democracy” is false and misleading.
In Democracy all citizens decide all policies, and no one decides for others.
People accept policy-making by representatives because they do not yet see how all citizens can do so themselves. This seems impossible. Finding out what millions of citizens want looked too complicated until recently. Today it can be done by electronic means.
In Direct Democracy every citizen can propose, discuss and vote on every policy.
Is this technically possible today? Yes.
Is this desirable? To some - No. To others - Yes;
