I felt compelled to ask this question as this quote from Erdoğan, The now Prime Minister of Turkey, sprung to my mind. He said, back in the 90s (translating): “Democracy is not a purpose for us, but a tool. Democracy is like a tram, we can hop off if we come to our desired stop.”
Is that so? What does the forum think?
What did he mean by “democracy”?
good question. I couldn’t gleam it from the recording where he said it, other than him saying it’s a tool not an end goal, and that it’s a tool for civilization.
I’d say that authoritarians and dictators would be happy to have this prime minister working for them. And the great Sultan that Erdogan is now, hopefully is happy with his prime minister, assuming he has done otherwise his job well.
(Erdogan among Ottoman Rulers)
Every radical movement or person, who wants unlimited power, has this kind of thinking: If we get into power through democratic elections (the tool aspect of democracy), then it’s perfect! We have gotten then the democratic credence or justification for our power. And then comes to crucial idea: that once in power, we can disregard democracy in order to stay in power (the hop off to our desired stop). Because naturally there need not be any safety valves for us being in power, no turning back or any threat of opposition.
And naturally this isn’t at all what democracy should stand for.
Hence when people say this kind of things, be very cautious of these assholes…
