{"id":197,"date":"2020-11-18T01:04:04","date_gmt":"2020-11-18T01:04:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/english.illinoisstate.edu\/euphemism\/16-1\/?page_id=197"},"modified":"2020-11-18T03:02:19","modified_gmt":"2020-11-18T03:02:19","slug":"down-with-democracy","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/euphemism.illinoisstate.edu\/16-1\/poetry\/down-with-democracy\/","title":{"rendered":"Down with Democracy!"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Down with Democracy!<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Haydn string quartet in E – flat op. 0 movement 5.<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Are not fools and stupid beings a majority in the world, and ought they not to have their representative?\u2014 Honor\u00e9 de Balzac, Le <\/em>D\u00e9put\u00e9<\/em> <\/em>d\u2019<\/em>Arcis<\/em>.<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s been some muttering I\u2019ve heard
about a\u00a0goverance\u00a0preferred;
it seems the lower classes want
democracy, with all its cant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The speeches make it sound real grand
in language stark to understand;
there\u2019s promises of something free
that goes to them, taken from me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, despotism, people\u00a0demn\u00a0\u2014
at least until explained to them;
but there\u2019s issues so delicate
you can\u2019t trust an electorate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The population\u2019s prejudiced,
distracted, as well hedonist;
the great unwashed can\u2019t understand
that government is better planned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The average chuff\u2019s illiterate\u00a0\u2014
he\u2019d hurt himself with a ballot;
\u2018Why bother with democracy
if you can\u2019t vote yourself money?\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Consulting ikons and\u00a0tea-leaves,
they\u2019ll\u00a0eeny-meeny\u00a0between thieves;
since elements rob themselves blind,
why should it surprise in mankind?1<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The people who want parliament
are out to shift the ignorant;
the problem with democracy
is when the turn-out out-votes me.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\u00a0riff-raff\u00a0and the menials
should leave it up to us nobles;
aristocrats, we\u2019ll make the law
and peasants, you may thank us all.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sure, populism\u2019s pretty quaint
and everyone\u2019s got some complaint;
it\u2019s effortless to finger-point
but lots more work to run this joint.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I ask you how low\u00a0can they\u00a0stoop
to call the King a\u00a0nincompoop?;
sure, sovereigns make a few boo-boos
but aren\u2019t those famines now old news?\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These knaves who want equality
deserve naught but the pillory;
muck-rakers\u2019 heads should be on blocks\u00a0\u2014
democracy\u2019s a scurvy pox.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The best technique, I would confide,
to win is join the winning side;
who needs those scrofulous cut-throats \u2014
who counts are those who count the\u00a0votes.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Who needs their tedious \u2018fair play,\u2019
they\u2019d end up despots anyway;
it\u2019s \u2018liberty!\u2019 \u2018til they prevail
then they\u2019ll oppress the curst\u00a0canaille<\/em>.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019ll not have mobs or street dissent\u00a0\u2014
all power to the 1%;
who cares what the great unwashed likes\u00a0\u2014
it\u2019s their or\u00a0our<\/em>\u00a0heads up on pikes!\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Democracy\u2019s the latest thing \u2014
it\u2019s\u00a0dernier cri<\/em>\u00a0to be left-wing;
but they\u2019ll be sorry, soon enough,
when they elect some dumb-ass chuff.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

* \u201cSince elements themselves do rob each other,
and Phoebe for her light doth rob her brother,
what\u00a0ist\u00a0in man, one man to rob another?\u201d
\u2014Richard Brome,\u00a0The City Wit<\/em>, act IV, sc. I.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\nDown with Democracy!  Haydn string quartet in E – flat op. 0 movement 5.  Are not fools and stupid beings a majority in the world, and ought they not to have their representative?\u2014 Honor\u00e9 de Balzac, Le D\u00e9put\u00e9 d\u2019Arcis.  There\u2019s been some muttering I\u2019ve heardabout…\n<\/div>\n
Continue reading “Down with Democracy!”<\/span>…<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":33,"featured_media":0,"parent":5,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"templates\/no-intro.php","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-197","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/euphemism.illinoisstate.edu\/16-1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/197","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/euphemism.illinoisstate.edu\/16-1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/euphemism.illinoisstate.edu\/16-1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/euphemism.illinoisstate.edu\/16-1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/33"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/euphemism.illinoisstate.edu\/16-1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=197"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/euphemism.illinoisstate.edu\/16-1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/197\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":342,"href":"https:\/\/euphemism.illinoisstate.edu\/16-1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/197\/revisions\/342"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/euphemism.illinoisstate.edu\/16-1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/5"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/euphemism.illinoisstate.edu\/16-1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=197"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}