MESSAGE FOR WEEK BEGINNING 29th December 2003

Deficiencies in Democracy

I thank those who sent me their views on the deficiencies of democracy. Many of the points are covered. There are still some outstanding points. If there is a fair race and one person wins by twenty hundredth of a second, then that person is the winner. The other person has done very well but gets nothing. That is perfectly fair in a race - that is the way things are set up. But why is it designed as a race in the first place? Why is democracy defined as a race? Because we cannot, so far, think of any other practical way of forming a government. That is a deficiency in our thinking.

Edward de Bono nmt
28th December 2003