In the US you say you live in a democracy but what kind of government do you really have?

Answer 1

It is a republican form of government that is guaranteed to the several states and the Constitution of the United States is a decidedly undemocratic document that seeks to prohibit any majority rule from discarding or trampling over the rights of the individual. The fact that people keep saying the United States is a democracy and the government sells war in order to "make the world safe for democracy" is an unfortunate turn of events for individuals everywhere. The literal translation of democracy from the Greek language into the English language is "mob rule". This should explain exactly why the Constitution was set to keep the mob from running rough shod over the rights of the individual. I don't accept democracy as 'Mob Rule', its problem, apart from its unachievability, is the reluctance of the minority to accept the decision of the majority, and the US is no different in this. From a distance I'll admit, I see the US as a very Conservative government. (With a huge C) It emphasises wealth & power & the status quo. It is stable & secure, which of course Allies like very much ! or that is the perception. I have no idea of the difference that McCain or Obama will make, no real idea of the differences between them. I am not subject to the US government, but I am influenced by it, particularly in economic terms, (when the US sneezes the world gets a cold !) and of course the military power that it is wielding in both Iraq & Afghanistan at this time. The perception of the US by outsiders, the wider world, is probably the key to the answer here.