To provide education and encouragement to help the idea of Democracy be alive, vibrant, relevant, and valued.
Please note - the posts are listed with the most recent first. If you want to start at the beginning of a numbered Series scroll down to find it.
Due to its weakened state as outlined in Part 17, Athens stayed away from military involvements during the last half of the 350s. At the same time, Philip of Macedonia continued to expand his reach and aspirations, conquering Thessaly and appearing ready to move into Central Greece and thus closer to Athens.
Read MoreAs discussed in The appearance and construction of Democracy - childhood to maturity in Greece, Part 11, Athens was considerably weakened militarily due to the alliance between Sparta and the Persian empire.
Read MoreAs per the prior post, there was much credit to give to the Athenians and their new political structure. However, the growing power and confidence and consequent hubris, began to change the Delian League as Athens progressively asserted its will on its allies.
Read MoreAs in other city-states, in the 7th century BC Athens was controlled by a small group of wealthy families. Unsurprisingly, the social unrest in the Greek world discussed above occurred in Athens as well. A precipitating event took place in 632 BC. Cylon, a nobleman, attempted to establish a tyranny.
Read MoreGiven the changes outlined previously, the centralized aristocracy system came under significant pressure for changes in the structure of power and societal administration. As is often the case with those holding entrenched power, the aristocracy did not respond well.
Read MoreThere is some evidence that by the middle of the 7th century BC, the polis had developed into a more formally organized system and the hereditary aristocracy was well developed and closely intermingled. However, near the end of the 7th century and the early 6th century, an era of revolutionary upheaval
Read MoreDemocracy has been described as “one of the rarest, most delicate, and fragile flowers in the jungle of human experience”(Donald Kagan, Pericles). “It has been a fleeting phenomenon in the history of government and has lain outside the experience of the vast majority of the peoples of the world down the ages.
Read MoreDemocracy is both a theory - a set of ideas and principles, and, a collective form of self-determination expressed as practices and structures.
Read MoreThe following begins a series of posts outlining and discussing the initial development of Democracy.
Read MoreWith the horror in Ukraine continuing I have been thinking about the problem of power and have added a new post: “The What and Why of Power”. See Nurture Democracy
Read MoreOur species has been working at Democracy for a very long time - for the better part of 3 millennia.
Read More
The graphic is a representation of citizenship and community as the foundation of Democracy. The small outer circles are either individuals or groups. These are connected to each other and to the center circle. The center circle is a community, large or small. The idea is that all are made stronger and more vital through these connections.
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