送交者: 随便 于 2005-4-12, 18:17:44:
为了避免在民主定义这个问题上无休止，无意义，无结果地争
论下去，俺做一回雷锋。
俺建议，将来提到民主，暂时用这个做为一个共同定义。如果
用的是别的含义，可以另行声明。必须指出，这个定义是数十
种定义中的一个。因此，它并不具有普适性，权威性，唯一性。
但是，为了讨论问题方便，一定的规定总是必要的。否则，就
等于在外交谈判中，无休止地讨论谁坐什么位置，而正式议题
的讨论永远无法开始。
好了，现在有了这个定义，各观点可以刀对刀，枪对枪地进入
正题了。
随便
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literally, rule by the people (from the Greek demos, “people,” and
kratos, “rule”). The term has three basic senses in contemporary
usage: (1) a form of government in which the right to make political
decisions is exercised directly by the whole body of citizens,
acting under procedures of majority rule, usually known as direct
democracy; (2) a form of government in which the citizens exercise
the same right not in person but through representatives chosen by
and responsible to them, known as representative democracy; and (3)
a form of government, usually a representative democracy, in which
the powers of the majority are exercised within a framework of
constitutional restraints designed to guarantee all citizens the
enjoyment of certain individual or collective rights, such as
freedom of speech and religion, known as liberal, or constitutional,
democracy.