The

The Hello and behind the news. My name is Doug Henwood. Even in the dog days of August,

the Orthodox two-guests and two segments format prevails. Ossita Wanevo will diagnose the flaws

in our flawed democracy, and in yet another break from all the dispiriting news of

genocidal war and scipian fascism, Derek Guy will analyze the political economy of upper-class

men's dress over the decades.

Extending a popular theme on behind the news, my first guest has plenty of thoughts about what's

undemocratic about the American political system, and some ideas have had a remedy it.

He's Ossito-Wanavu, author of The Right of the People, Democracy in the case for a New American

founding, just out from Random House. He's also a contributing editor at The New Republic, a columnist for the

Guardian, and a fellow at the Roosevelt Institute. Democracy in itself doesn't know his move me,

but he has an expansive view of the idea, including his economic dimensions, which we don't talk

about enough, so you'll have to read the book for more.

Ossita Oneeva.

What is democracy?

So democracy is a system in which the governed govern.

That's the most succinct definition that I think I've been able to come up with.

It's a system where the governed themselves, not some king, not some higher authority, given arbitrary power, but the government themselves direct society, direct their lives, direct their institutions. Another good gloss on this is

Lincoln's of the people, by the people, for the people rendering of government. That's the

basic idea. I think that we've gotten ourselves to a point where most people, when you say democracy,

think about the electoral process we have now. You know, every couple of years, you go to the polls,

you cast a vote that lands in a, I guess, now a digital ballot. You elect some guy, and that's

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