Saturday 1 November 2008

Democracy?

Just like London buses...you wait for ages and then 2 come along almost at the same time.

I have been pondering this week on democracy. How can you do anything else in the lead up to the least democratic election of the most powerful man in the world's so-called leading democracy? CNN has had me ranting at the screen on a number of occasions as they ask everyone around the world whether they want Obama or McCain.

"They can't vote!" I scream at the presenters. "It doesn't matter what they think...."

But then the idea hit me. Wouldn't it be a whole lot more democratic if everyone else WAS allowed to vote. First, in America, the President, who probably still is the most powerful man in the world, despite my wishes to the contrary and the approaching takeover of that position of the Emporer of China, or whatever they have there as top dog, would be chosen by all the people in the world who are impacted by the decision. Brainwave!

But extend the idea further to every other country. There would be no Mugabe and no Adinajab, would have been no Saddam or Hitler or Pol Pot. OK, I know a number of these weren't elected anyway, but a serious number of the very bad leaders would have never had the power to inflict so much misery on the people in their country. Sometimes people need to be saved from themselves by having decisions taken out of their own hands.

I imagine a huge on-line voting facility, a bit like the Eurovision Song Contest but without TW and the annoying songs and block-voting for the Lithuanians. We'd have to limit the candidates to natives of the country being voted for, otherwise Arnie really would end up as US President and Borat as the leader of Kazhakstan...

But imagine it. I think it's brilliant - an instant end to poor leaders across the world. But then I suppose everyone always thinks their own ideas are brilliant...

Living in Germany but not being German means I'd get to vote here. As far as I can see there are no politicians worth voting in. So I think I'd probably vote for Nena. Who can forget her appearance on Top of the Pops singing 99 Red Balloons? What better representative of this fine country?

So who would be British PM if we applied this, do you think? Who would the great people of this world vote in as our leader if we had no say in it ourselves?