I saved this political cartoon about a decade ago because I thought it was an insightful commentary on the problem with voters.
Let me be quick to say that I favor a representative system of government; people need to have a say in government because the government itself needs a check and balance. To trust a small group of individuals (whether in a monarchy, aristocracy, oligarchy, or dictatorship) is foolish. The tendency is to see oneself as more important than one ought, which gives rise to a lot of false ideologies such as “divine right of kings” or rulership based on one’s rank in society. Therefore, people should have input into how the government operates and who should be operating it.
Yet that doesn’t mean that we can repose all trust in the people either. In our political discourse, we have raised “the people” to an almost godlike status. The people will always make the right choice, some say. That can only be true if the people are thinking the way God intended for them to think, and then acting upon what they know is right, based on Biblical principles.
As I survey American political history, and the choices the people have made over the years, the result is definitely mixed. All too often, people will vote for that which leads to the destruction of a society. Why will they do so?
There are many reasons, but they all start with a Biblical view of man and of sin. I’ll continue with this in the next post.