Hi orda,
Good point.
Democracy is a mechanism by which folks surrender the authority which the state needs in order to make decisions on behalf of society.
What csl wants is something which is absolutely available in the world. It looks a lot like Pakistan's tribal area, Eastern Congo and Somalia. The normal state of government-free nature is not nirvana. Authority passes to ad hoc local actors, tyrants and fundamentalist religions. In such circumstances, wealth is easy to withdraw from the wealthy - especially if it is made of gold!
Now csl will presumably argue that we need a government to protect property. Okay. That's the road we have all been down. But if I am one of those with no wealth, why should I vote only to protect the property of the rich? Why should I accept csl's limits on what a government is permitted to do with its authority? Why shouldn't I permit the government to pursue common goods and all kinds of protections?
Of course the wealthy want to protect what they have. And protecting property interests is one thing among many that most people wish a government to do. But there are other things as well, and some of these require taxation as well as representation.
Who should we tax most to pursue society's common purposes? At one level, everyone but the indigent. At another, the folks with the money, of course.
The great thing about democracy (when it isn't leased from plutocrats) is that the voters may get rid of the folks in charge. If they don't shape society the way voters want it, out the door they go.
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