Is America Dying?

 

Is America Dying?

Below I share an editorial from online Townhall.com, written by Mark Lewis on 2/21/26, and is entitled How America Has Destroyed Its Democracy, Part Two; The Aristocracy of Merit. Here is the article: Mark: “

How America Has Destroyed Its Democracy, Part Two: The Aristocracy of Merit

Mark Lewis | Feb 21, 2026

The opinions expressed by columnists are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Townhall.com.

Alonzo Chappel/National Archives via AP

“We may appeal to every page of history...for proofs irrefragable, that the people, when they have been unchecked, have been as unjust, tyrannical, brutal, barbarous, and cruel as any king or senate possessed by an uncontrollable power. The majority has eternally, and without any one exception, usurped over the rights of the minority.” – John Adams

“Remember, democracy never lasts long. It soon wastes, exhausts, and murders itself. There was never a democracy yet that did not commit suicide.” – John Adams””

My response: We have to be for the masses, but, to escape the dangers of mobocracy where the majority usurps the rights of the minority, down to each individual, the mass rule must be where each voter, each citizen, is an aristocratic, anarchist individuating supercitizen and that kind of mass rule will last, and not turn tyrannical, or is at much reduced risk of so deteriorating into chaos and authoritarianism.

Mark: “

As I discussed in my first article in this series, our Founding Fathers considered democracy the “most vile” form of government because it created factions that would tear the country apart. The voters would eventually bankrupt the nation by demanding politicians give them increasing amounts of other people’s money. As Benjamin Franklin said, “When the people find they can vote themselves money, that will herald the end of the republic.” Hence, they did not trust “the people” as a whole.

Then, what kind of government and society did they try to establish? It is a fascinating historical study that few Americans today truly understand.

Our Founders believed that there were basically three natural forms of government: monarchy (rule by one), aristocracy (rule by the few), and democracy (rule by the many, or the people). All of them were dangerous and had the historical tendency to degenerate into a tyranny: a monarch would devolve into a dictatorship (one man rule), an aristocracy would eventuate into an oligarchy (rule by the rich few for their own benefit), and a democracy would lead to mob rule, which would end up in a dictatorship, too, as decent people would demand somebody stop the chaos. As historian Sir Alexander Fraser Tytler wrote, a democracy is “always followed by a dictatorship.”

So, our Founding Fathers didn’t want a pure monarchy, aristocracy, or democracy. Thus, they produced a “mixed” government with forms of all three within it. The president would represent the “monarchy,” the Senate was the “aristocratic” branch (fewer in number in Congress, and chosen, initially, by the state governments), and the House of Representatives was the “democratic” branch—chosen directly by the people, and given control of financial matters. The idea being a “checks and balances” situation. No bill could be passed without the consent of both houses of Congress (both the “aristocracy” and the “democracy”), and the president (the “monarchy”) had to sign it into law (he could veto it and send it back to Congress, which could override his veto). Passing laws was not easy and wasn’t intended to be because laws restrict freedom and can lead to government tyranny, the one thing the Founders feared most of all (it’s what they believed they had rebelled against). The system of “power” was also divided among the national government and the states (a “federal” system), with most of the power being in the hands of the states and local governments for the simple reason that they are closer to the people and thus, theoretically, easier to control. Since the people in “power” had to be elected due to the size of the country, a “republic” was established (elected representatives of the people, not every citizen directly taking part in every government decision).”

My response: We have wandered far from the political wisdom of our Founders, for the itch to pass laws and grow government is now the American political system at all levels.

The Founders were unique and mixed monarchy, aristocracy, and democracy so that they would check each other’s power lust, and it appears that the law of moderation even applies to politics, that balance and divided while united power-sharing arrangements is the best system conceivable.

Mark: “

The old European aristocracy was based upon family lineage—an “aristocracy of birth” and could not ensure quality leadership. King George III literally went insane. So, to our Founders, let the best people emerge, by freedom and equality before the law, to the top through virtue and industry. And these people should be the rulers of the “mixed Republic” they established. Not democracy. John Adams stated, “If you give more than a share in the sovereignty to democrats...they will vote all the property out of the hands of you aristocrats.”

Create a country based on freedom and equality before the law. With limited government interference, the virtuous and industrious would succeed. But everybody should have an equal chance, and if you fail, it’s your own fault. An “aristocracy of merit” would be produced—virtuous leaders, not those chosen by “democratic” masses who would vote themselves the money of others.

Unfortunately, increasing democracy is what America got. Next: how feminism has helped destroy American democracy.”