Re: American democracy
"IIRC the Founding Fathers initially gave everyone an equal voice in the passing of laws."
Nope, the original Constitution didn't have universal suffrage (that really didn't hit until the 19th Amendment granted the vote to women; the 15th granted it to all men, and the 26th lowered the age to 18 to reflect draft injustices). To be able to vote originally, you had to be a landowner (IOW, have actual skin in the game). The Industrial Revolution IIRC reduced the dependency on land which is why that requirement went away (that and the fact recently-freed slaves were starting from scratch and would otherwise face vicious cycle issues).
Biting the hand that feeds IT
