Democracy vs. Dictatorship

Governments range throughout the world, whether a country may have a democracy, oligarchy, monarchy or a dictatorship depends on the head of state and the citizens themselves. Two well-known forms of governments, that are both found more often than others, are a democracy and a dictatorship. These forms of governments hold their strengths and weaknesses, and differ when it comes to power distribution. Whether which governmental system is better depends on the eyes of the person. A democracy can best be described as a government that gives the power to the people. While this can be seen as a strength it also happens to be its greatest weakness. Since it gives the choice to the citizens and although this has been beneficial in the past for Americans (civil rights) it has also lead to many conflicts. Practically speaking, “What the majority wants, is what the law is” thus causing an almost bias governmental system. Nonetheless, it would seem in this case that the strengths outweigh the weaknesses that come along with a democracy. A well-known strength is the fact that in a democracy it treats and considers all of their citizens equal in the eyes of the law. Another comes with the distribution of power among the national government that leads to fairness and justice when deciding laws and bills. This is mainly where the weaknesses of a dictatorship begin to show. A single person who has come to power over the rest runs a dictatorship. That one person sets the law, controls the nation power and is in charge foreign affairs. This can be dreadful for citizens who do not agree with the dictator’s policies. Although it does not share the same weakness as a democracy carries, it does hold many potential dangers. Since in this type of government, they treat their citizens like cattle instilling rules to make sure they behave and not thinking about what is best for the majority of the citizens, but what is best for the government itself. However, a dictatorship also has its strengths including fast decisions when it comes to laws and policies and less crime due to the strict governmental system. It can be debated which governmental system is better for a country; in my opinion I believe a democracy is the best form of government to have when compared to a dictatorship. Naturally, some may disagree believing the strict and fast decisions offer security for the citizens. Either way both governmental systems have been known to work and provide for a [more or less] thriving country.