A principle advocating for the devolution of political and fiscal power to the most local level of government possible (cities, towns, counties). The argument, known as subsidiarity, is that decisions are more accountable, responsive, and innovative when made close to those affected. It can exist within both capitalist and socialist frameworks and is often a rallying cry against centralized state or corporate control.
Example: The Participatory Budgeting process in Porto Alegre, Brazil, where city residents directly decide how to allocate a portion of the municipal budget, is a celebrated innovation in Local Democracy. It shifts power from city hall technocrats to community assemblies in neighborhoods.
by Dumu The Void February 5, 2026
Get the Local Democracy mug.A system where the central political and economic unit is the commune—a self-governing community that collectively manages its resources and social life. Communes federate with each other for larger projects. This model is deeply associated with anarchist and utopian socialist thought, envisioning a confederation of autonomous, directly democratic communities replacing the nation-state.
Example: The Paris Commune of 1871, though brief, was the iconic attempt at Communal Democracy. Paris was reorganized into a federation of wards, each with its own assembly, recallable delegates, and integrated military and administrative functions, aiming to create a decentralized republic of communes across France.
by Dumu The Void February 5, 2026
Get the Communal Democracy mug.Related Words
Demko
• Demko'd
• demkog
• teddy demko
• Democrat
• democracy
• demo
• Democrap
• Democratic Underground
• Democratic Party
A model of direct democracy where the sovereign body is the popular assembly—a mass meeting of all citizens in a polity. It’s only feasible for small populations (like a town or a large organization). Decisions are made by majority vote after open debate. It is the purest, most ancient form of democracy, but scales poorly, leading to the use of elected representatives in larger societies.
Example: The New England Town Meeting, where all eligible voters in a town gather annually to debate and vote directly on the budget, laws, and local officials, is a living (though often declining) example of Assembly Democracy in a modern, albeit limited, context.
by Dumu The Void February 5, 2026
Get the Assembly Democracy mug.The official corporate-sponsored brand of regime change, now available in crisp, flag-themed packaging! When a superpower develops a sudden, altruistic concern for foreign civilians halfway across the globe—civilians whose sovereignty is, coincidentally, located directly on top of the world’s largest untapped oil reserves—you’ve found the real deal.
It’s the perfect distraction technique: why let your leader suffer from embarrassing domestic poll numbers when you can launch a few thousand “liberating” bombs instead? Watch as cruise missiles, each one a tiny ambassador of freedom, deliver shock-and-awe democracy directly to someone else’s capital city. Never mind the messy, decades-long occupation or the small print that transfers mineral rights to Western shareholders. This is about saving people from their dictator—by installing one slightly more amenable to our pipeline routes.
It’s the perfect distraction technique: why let your leader suffer from embarrassing domestic poll numbers when you can launch a few thousand “liberating” bombs instead? Watch as cruise missiles, each one a tiny ambassador of freedom, deliver shock-and-awe democracy directly to someone else’s capital city. Never mind the messy, decades-long occupation or the small print that transfers mineral rights to Western shareholders. This is about saving people from their dictator—by installing one slightly more amenable to our pipeline routes.
Freedom&Democracy™: We had to destroy their village in order to save it. It’s not imperialism, it’s a business expense. You a free choice; take it or cry and take!
by Imagine Freedom March 3, 2026
Get the Freedom&Democracy™ mug.A political system where democratic institutions exist in form but are hollowed out by networks of personal connections, patronage, and reciprocal favoritism among elites. Elections happen, parliaments meet, constitutions are cited—but power flows through informal networks of cronies who reward loyalty over competence and use public office for private enrichment. It's democracy in name, oligarchy in practice, and farce in execution. The public is given the appearance of choice while the real decisions are made in golf clubs, boardrooms, and family gatherings. Crony democracy is what happens when liberal democratic forms survive but their substance—accountability, competition, rule of law—has been captured by a connected few.
Example: "The country had elections, a parliament, and a constitution, but every minister was a relative or business partner of the president. Crony democracy: the form of democracy with the substance of a family business."
by Abzugal March 22, 2026
Get the Crony Democracy mug.A NASCAR Democratic, also known as a White Trash Democrat, is a White person who has conservative values and preferences, but vocally criticizes Republicans because of their low socioeconomic status.
I keep seeing NASCAR Democrats posting Facebook stories at Walmart about how Trump is raising the price of eggs.
by Definitionally February 12, 2025
Get the NASCAR Democrat mug.by JuanSanClaro May 2, 2025
Get the Ben Dekko mug.