Quote Originally Posted by Seamus Fermanagh View Post
When our republic was founded, the suffrage was restricted on some since-superseded cultural grounds (Sex), some abjectly idiotic views of humanity (Race), and the need to be a person of some property (land, business of X value, etc.). The latter restriction was not set at a high level -- most journeymen, most landowners, virtually any business owner, etc. -- qualified for the suffrage. The last state dropped the property clause in 1856.

Would you think it appropriate to re-institute property restrictions?
I'm not sure what is appropriate, but I'm pretty sure reality TV, principally shows that encourage viewers to vote on inconsequential things, is bad for democracy. What we see now in the UK, and AFAICS in the US as well, is an extreme form of liberal democracy, with the worst aspects of each. The liberal expectation of individual rights but without the accompanying assumption of responsibilities (such as to research a subject or to find informed voices on a subject), and the knowledge that a democracy confers an equal voice for the uninformed as for the expert. I'm probably seeing this from a UK soft left perspective, but in the US the alt right has been particularly vigorous in exploiting this combination, in particular their radio channels and their followers.

What I'd like to see in the UK is an elected Commons plus an appointed Lords filled with experts from their fields. This balances the democracy (Commons) with a technocracy (Lords). Things work differently in the US, as the two Houses balance representation (Congress) and states (Senate), and the headline role is directly elected. All parts of government are geared towards democracy, which can be a problem when the electorate manages to combine liberalism and democracy in the above unsatisfactory manner. Perhaps fact checking for politicians would help, but then who's going to keep track? One can't force voters to be more mindful of facts.