Even though we are not registered voters on the Maine island where we spend summers, we usually attend its Town Meeting, in part to see how democracy works in such a setting. The 2023 “warrant” included a controversial and expensive item, challenged by several voters. As one voter after another spoke up, the rationale for this item became clearer and clearer. At last its lead opponent rose again, this time to withdraw his objection. The item then passed, unanimously.
Before moving on through the agenda the Moderator remarked, “This is a nearly perfect form of government. People speak up; facts become clear; people listen and sometimes change their minds.”
He’s right, I think, though I came away convinced that democracy is not so much a form of government as a cluster of habits of mind, including a willingness to listen to those with whom one disagrees, and, if need be, change one’s mind. These habits are slow to form; they atrophy unless regularly used. But when they flourish, they are a source of strength for a community and of pride for its residents.