The American version of democracy vs British Parliamentary Democracy?

Question

What do you think the pro's and con's are of each ?

Is an elected Senate all that necesary?
Being able to defeat a minority government in mid stream seems like a damm good thing to me but a majority government is almost a dictatorship at times -
Does the PMO (prime minister's office) have too much power as compared to the President ?

Are the use of party whips in the British syestem again invested with too much power as (vote the way your leader tells you to or your out of the party and can sit over there as an independant) as opposed to the weaker version of party whips in the the US ?

I object to this statement - largely because I think he is right - this may be the first time I have ever agreed with you .


It really doesn't make any difference. Both are ruled by aristocracies comprised of elitists that really have little in common with the people they rule.

Answer 1

Good question.

Winston Churchill said: "Democracy is the worst form of government in the world........... except for all the others."

That's a great point because it reflects the truth that politics (the activity of controlling people and governments) is necessary in a civilized society but it is not simple or affable.

There are problems inherent in democratic (or representative if I must make this notation for some readers on this message board) forms of government. But I think the solutions to the problems in governments formed "of the people, by the people, and for the people" are intrinsic in their definition. That is, we have to be involved in our governments. Not just voting, but also attending party caucuses, staying in touch with our representatives concerning issues of the day, and staying informed on the daily activities of our elected officials.

My point is, although it is good to investigate the differences between 2 forms of just government (as your question brings us to do), I don't think our problems come primarily from process. I think we citizens are too relaxed in execution of our responsibilities.

I'm as guilty of this as anyone. It is time for me to follow through and take my own advise on this.

Answer 2

The Prime minister in a British Parliamentary Democracy is like a first among equals. This means that essentially he has very little to do with an executive branch.

The Senate in the US was originally setup to represent the state's interest by the state legislatures electing them. Since we passed an amendment that messed this up, we messed with the system and have ended up with crappy state rights.

The advantage to a British system is there are more choices than in America. In America you can choose from Republican or Democrat. In Britian you have Labour, Conservative, LIberal Democrats and others.

Oh and by the way America is not a democracy its a Republic.

Answer 3

There is more to it than that. They have many parties & it isn't a winner takes all. The ability to gril the leader maybe fun & interesting, we do it thru the press.

The main problem is there is NO accountability for the politicians! The way our laws are written with unrelated amendments, riders, pork, ... gives the politician ability to cover ones tush. This ability could also be called the guarantied employment of any politian that gets voted out. They can go back to being lawyers. Every action/law should have to stand on its own!!

Answer 4

1. Head of state
2. 2 houses - upper & lower.
3. houses have a majority party & minority party.
4. Party leaders in each house.
5. Enforcers try to make sure party memebers vote the party line in each house.

This appears to be the system for both the UK & the US. So what are we comparing again?

Answer 5

It really doesn't make any difference. Both are ruled by aristocracies comprised of elitists that really have little in common with the people they rule.

Answer 6

I think they both are great in theory, but they suck in practice.
Political parties make for great debate in lawmaking bodies but anytime you align yourself with a group philosophy you sacrifice the true manner to solve a problem. Every state or province should have it's elected members represent their state or province, not vote along "party lines". I think we should look into that in the great democracy experiment.

Answer 7

I think the Parliament having the ability to grill your prime minister is great. It would be very uncomfortable to watch President Bush struggle through the questions he's asked.