Democracy has not been the antidote to exploitation it was intended to be. In its earliest manifestation democracy was created to safeguard citizens against the excesses of rich and powerful individuals and organisations. Since its maturation in the late 1800s and onwards into the 21^st Century, like the “religion industry” of old, democracy has increasingly been seized upon to validate discriminatory ideologies under the pretext of being endorsed by the popular vote.

When 71% of enfranchised citizens in the UK did not vote for the incumbent Conservative government in 2019, this is a spurious claim. (ONS figures).

Social architecture is breaking, exacerbated by such a range of destructive factors that civilisation as we know it is threatened – ecological collapse, autocracy, corruption, resource starvation, genocide, economically motivated warfare, entrenched poverty, and unbridled inequality. All these negative impacts are politically avoidable and yet nation-states, more definitively the politicians that lead them, are reluctant to address these issues even when doing so would certainly contribute to the enrichment of humanity as a whole.

The enemy within: The British Government acts as an inhibitor rather than an enabler.

Political parties promote progressively retaliatory ideologies, often vindictive, with the result that, generally speaking, all the main parties’ views have become narrow, detached, unrealistic and elitist. These characteristics not only threaten the democratic process but directly impact our daily lives, particularly relating to quality of life, welfare and health.

People, not money, should be at the heart of every government’s plan, everyone knows this and yet appalling and offensive policies go unchallenged due in part to ineffective parliamentary opposition. Without proper representation by constituency MPs, a growing number of people are taking matters into their own hands and, as a result, we are witnessing strikes and protests.

Party Politics: By its nature, party politics is divisive and confrontational and more often than not produces results that are neither timely nor in the interests of the country’s citizens. I doubt there is a place for party politics in any properly considered reshaping of democracy.

Accountability and Equality under the Law: These are the foundations upon which democracy was conceived. They are the bedrock that enables democracy to function and yet these principles have become anathema to politicians charged with a duty to protect them. Many in public office have developed a taste for lying, divisiveness, coercion, and fraud. These failings are nothing new, however, their practice has become more blatant and aggressive, largely because there is little or no effective retribution.

Communication and Tech Media: Technology has not reduced the pressures of work or contributed to social inclusion. The reverse is true; despite astonishing technological advances, we are experiencing significant regressions in personal freedoms. In recent decades, the development of high technology has accelerated, especially in the fields of biotech, quantum dynamics, pharmacology, AI/robotics, energy generation, harvesting and storage. Simultaneously, communications systems have advanced exponentially, instantly connecting people all over the globe proliferating ideas, and activism. However, research has shown that even with unprecedented access to personal technology, it is making only minor or short-lived differences in the quality of people’s lives.

All these social platforms and networks are financially driven through privately controlled organisations. Despite their laid-back image, they still operate firmly within the Capitalist framework.

With these contentious issues in play, it’s no great challenge to conclude that humanity is at the cusp of significant social re-alignment not only in Britain but also globally.

Revolution: It seems to me that tides are running inexorably towards revolution. In Britain, it is unofficially acknowledged that the government cannot be relied upon to provide necessary services for a growing number of people. Additionally, it is becoming increasingly obvious that political interventions, tightening the central government’s control of regional and local councils, are generally obstructive to the needs of the communities they serve. As a result, in most areas of Britain inequalities and divisions are deepening while more and more people are being pushed into poverty.

Against a background of insipid leadership from all political parties, a significant tipping point will occur when a majority of the population realises that the state is essentially impotent in addressing these pressing issues or continues to ignore them. When confronted by the consolidated will of the population, predictably, even as change becomes inevitable, politicians of every stripe will no doubt exert extraordinary pressure to maintain their version of the status quo, at which point, it is most likely uprisings will quickly escalate into organised and specifically targeted hostility.

Violence on the streets of our towns and cities will be the inevitable result of corrupt and incompetent political leadership.

This is one vision of the near future.

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Picture: Various sources.

© Rivenrod 2023