Our world is changing very quickly. Will democracy survive or be overtaken by events?
Lincoln's 'Gettysburg address' speaks of 'government of the people, by the people and for the people'. This we call democracy.
We could be forgiven for thinking that democracy is here to stay. This century it has survived two world wars and seen off communism. Francis Fukuyama has published his book which argues that liberal democracy represents The End of History. But this certainty in the continuance of democracy may be misplaced. The historian Herbert Butterfield said: 'the only absolute is change'. Viewing post-modern society we see every kind of institution dissolving. We should not think democracy will be exempt.