Democracy's flaws: Population Races: Democracy 0 – Biocracy 5

Abstract

One of democracy's fatal flaws is its exploitation in population growth, depopulation and disenfranchisement.

Introduction

As a corollary of our thought experiment on the Sea-People’s Citizen Assembly Scenario, we consider how democracy foments population growth races (or depopulation, or disenfranchisement). See for example Northern Ireland, Israel, total war, genocide, ethnic cleansing, settler colonialism, Jim Crow, nativism, denial of votes for women.

The outcome of Population Races hangs in the balance

In many cases, there is an assumption that people from certain demographics will vote in a predictably derivative way. Many political parties are set up to represent an interest group, or at least claim to be doing so. This could be a religion, a working class, a racist/nativist group, a pensioners party, a party of (aspirational or overt) riches, and so on. Or a geographical distinction, perhaps with a separatist goal.

By manipulating demographics, if other means like gerrymandering aren't enough, an electoral majority or at least plurality of seats may be sufficient to gain power for a party that represents a segment of the electorate. This could mean a long-term strategy of high birth rates, or disenfranchising opponents, or making use of concentrations or dilutions of population, or moving demographic groups in or out of areas. In the past, various requisites (like property-owning requirements, sex, age, ancestry, literacy tests and so on) have been used to manufacture an electorate, deny citizenship, or deny voters at polling booths.

At the more extreme end, this could mean settler colonialism, ethnic cleansing, forced sterilisation, culturecide, ecocide and genocide. All of which have been done in so-called democracies.

Conclusion

Yet another essential flaw in democracy, a political system which can be expressed through contesting populations. This is not a flaw of biocracy, a political system which is fundamentally concerned with how populations can coexist peacefully and fruitfully.

More flaws of democracy will be explored later.

Democracy's flaws: Population Races: Democracy 0 – Biocracy 5 © 2025 by Sleeping Dog is licensed under CC BY 4.0