1
99:59:59,999 --> 99:59:59,999
Does this title appeal to you?

2
00:00:01,360 --> 00:00:05,600
You are listening to Radio Here and Now 95.2 FM and online at icietmaintenant.com. You just

3
00:00:05,600 --> 00:00:10,480
heard the four seasons of Vivaldi, the beginning of autumn because seasons change,

4
00:00:10,480 --> 00:00:13,760
but unfortunately, the same can't be said about the political systems.

5
00:00:13,760 --> 00:00:16,320
And to discuss this, we are joined by Etienne Chouard, Hello Etienne.

6
00:00:16,320 --> 00:00:17,400
Hello

7
00:00:17,400 --> 00:00:21,160
Etienne, hello, I am going to briefly introduce you ... So you are an independent researcher,

8
00:00:21,160 --> 00:00:25,480
I saw recently a video entitled: Etienne Chouard, researcher of the cause of causes,

9
00:00:29,120 --> 00:00:29,800
Yes...

10
00:00:29,800 --> 00:00:32,960
Yes? Alright then we will say Etienne Chouard, researcher of the cause of causes, you are working on the idea

11
00:00:38,760 --> 00:00:44,000
of democracy, fake democracy compared to genuine democracy, so I am going to try and summarize

12
00:00:44,000 --> 00:00:49,840
in a few sentences your arguments and you can correct me if need be. So in short,

13
00:00:49,840 --> 00:00:54,480
You think that we are living today in a fake democracy,

14
00:00:54,480 --> 00:01:00,200
which is based on the wrong choice, on the illusion of choice, when in reality the accurate name of the system

15
00:01:00,200 --> 00:01:04,800
in which we live, is the representational government. Because real democracy (genuine democracy)

16
00:01:04,800 --> 00:01:08,640
is not based on elections, but on lottery. Does this sound like a good introduction?

17
00:01:11,240 --> 00:01:17,920
Yes, but in fact for someone who has never heard of this subject, it will be somewhat brutal

18
00:01:17,920 --> 00:01:21,200
you are right, I used this short intro because we had you as a guest several times and our listeners

19
00:01:21,200 --> 00:01:25,320
are for the majority familiar with your thoughts. So, for the listeners who in fact

20
00:01:27,880 --> 00:01:33,600
are discovering this for the first time, I have here a book you talked about on this radio

21
00:01:33,600 --> 00:01:36,800
during your first appearance, anyways with me, and the book is called "Principes du Gouvernement Representatif"

22
00:01:36,800 --> 00:01:42,280
It is a book by Bernard Manin, and I want to thank Benjamin for

23
00:01:42,280 --> 00:01:48,960
lending it to me, he borrowed it from his local library, and I will read

24
00:01:48,960 --> 00:01:54,120
I think reading from Bernard Manin is better than my introduction

25
00:01:56,760 --> 00:02:02,560
So I will read these few sentences: " From Athenians democrats to Montesquieu,

26
00:02:02,560 --> 00:02:06,720
from Aristotle to Rousseau, no one thought of turning the election into THE democratic instrument of choice.

27
00:02:10,200 --> 00:02:13,840
Democracy was not equivalent to a representational government. It was the lottery system that seemed better fit

28
00:02:13,840 --> 00:02:18,000
to respect strict equality of the candidates. What happened at the turn of the eighteenth century

29
00:02:18,000 --> 00:02:22,840
in Europe and the United States, for this multi-secular concept to be reversed, and lose ground to the idea

30
00:02:28,680 --> 00:02:32,200
that a democracy is, in essence, a representational government? Is this change an accurate reflection?

31
00:02:32,200 --> 00:02:36,760
This book represents a theory of representational government

32
00:02:36,760 --> 00:02:41,520
that fits both the European tradition and the American debate. Bernard Manin argues that

33
00:02:41,520 --> 00:02:44,760
the representational system does not have the unique function to allow citizens to self-govern.