Power to the People.
According to the 2002 Britannica Encyclopedia; "Democracy is a philosophy of government in which supreme power is invested in the people and exercised by them directly or indirectly through a system of representation usually involving periodic free elections." However, the meaning of a word is not a "transparent" representation for a definition. Meaning varies from culture to culture and differs between individuals. It is constructed and is interpreted by many contrasting views. What one chooses as a definition of democracy can cause a discrepancy for another with a conflicting point of view. The Greek philosopher Aristotle ( 384-322 B.C.) was the first to define democracy in his argument "A Definition of Justice", in which he established the foundations and ideas of a just state and public governance. Later, Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826) wrote one of the most memorable documents in American history ; the Declaration of Independence. Even though, the difference between Jefferson and Aristotle is enormous and despite the time gap, their creations are the groundwork for democracy as we know it today. The characteristics of the state in both creations are strikingly similar. In both, the supreme objectives of a fair state is to have united and honorable lives. As Aristotle asserts,"[T] he end of the state is a good life, and the state is the union of families and villages in a perfect and self sufficing life, by which we mean a happy and honorable life." Nevertheless, in order for democracy to exist it is necessary that the presence of the popular vote and approval of any decision making in the government. The knowledgeable few are no entitled to dictate what the rest of the state will do, given that is the state the one that will be affected by the law. The popular vote is better qualified to approve any law since the decision made by the many are better than the decisions made by the wise few or the wisest one.
