Western democracy in decline, and not just in the West

The United States and the West have been battered by recent political crises in Ukraine and Thailand, turmoil in the Middle East, and their own lingering financial crises. Since 2000, many nominally democratic developing countries have in fact become despotic. The external trappings of elections are all that is left.

Western democracy is increasingly rigid and losing its appeal. Ever since the end of the cold war 25 years ago, the West has become stuck in a rut and turned a blind eye to issues that people care about. Their democracy is about struggles between parties and canvassing for votes. Once a political party comes to power, it becomes indifferent to the real needs of the people. As a result, the general populace becomes less and less enthusiastic about politics. Elections become a tool for small groups fighting for power and their own interests.

The core value of democracy is to provide a basis of consensus so various interests groups of a society can co-exist in harmony. The West, however, only considers a government established through competition under the multiparty system to be a true democracy.

No doubt, there is a certain rationale behind multiparty competition, and they have played an important historic role. But with changing times, few people are in a position to form political parties and fight for state power. This system gradually excludes the majority from a country's political life.

Multiparty competition turns into fierce rivalry between different interest groups. The constant power struggles have become a common feature for both Western democracies and non-Western countries adopting a Western democratic system. A typical example of this is China's Taiwan, where fierce battles between the "blue" [KMT] and "green" [DPP] camps have not only blurred the lines between right and wrong, but also torn society apart.

America's double standards have also shaken the foundations of the Western democratic system.