We don't use our democracy

We think we use our democracy, but we don’t. We talk about protecting democracy, but we talk about democracy like it’s a listed building nobody has a plan for.

We don’t compromise any more. We just go for the win. We don’t even seem to care if there’s an outcome from the debate. So long as we win, or rather, so long as the other loses.

Progress has winners and losers. Over time, you should find yourself on both sides of that coin. If you don’t, your society is either adrift, stagnating, or you’re in an autocracy. In a staid environment like this, people yearn for boldness.

On the other side of the pond we’re seeing boldness; boldness with lashings of corruption and self-enrichment. This has quickly morphed into something else akin to autocracy.

When used well, democracies feel different to the current situation. You would win some and lose some. That occasional win, saving a vital service or getting funding for projects that benefit the many build and accumulate over time. If you can’t compromise for that, if all your winning on social media has no real outcomes then maybe, just maybe, you’re doing it wrong.