Democracy is an important component of government policy in the modern world in which we live; Some would argue that it is the only true form of “practiced politics,” because democracy keeps the interests of other individuals in mind. The domain of democracy is the place where ideas are shared because no being will ever possess the notion of absolute truth. Democracy allowed the presentation of multiple ideas that diversified perspectives on a single issue. With the origins of democracy recorded in ancient Greece, this form of "rule" by the "people", like its corresponding roots of "kratos" and "demos", would define it. The Athenians practiced a form of democracy known as developmental democracy. In this form, democracy exists as a system aimed at promoting the efforts of individual citizens within a progressive society, taking into account the good of society. Participants are chosen by lottery and divided by tribal territory to join the ecclesia where policies are created. Laws are made with the intention of encompassing every citizen without giving artificial advantages to one citizen over another. Power in Athens was shared among the people, otherwise known as the polis. Greeks participated in a direct democracy that allowed participating citizens to direct the flow of policy-making efforts. Having self-government has given Greek citizens a sense of freedom, or eleutheria, which is due to the ability and responsibility to make decisions. provide subsidies through participatory government for a self-governing city-state. The right to participate in social affairs in relation to the state also added to the freedom available to property-owning citizens. Personal contribution, although...... middle of paper ...... due to its division of authority among those without property or established social ties. This balkanized a potentially abusive luxury normally found only among the wealthy and a minority, to the point that a police state was not easily mobilized to control the private lives of the Roman people. The separation of tasks into different branches not only increased efficiency due to the concentration of tasks among specialized parts, but also helped to protect the overarching interests of the whole. Works Cited Crick, B. (2002). Democracy: A very brief introduction. Oxford, New York: Oxford University Press. Held, D. (1996). Models of democracy. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press. Lakoff, S. (1996). Democracy: history, theory, practice. Boulder, CO: Westview Press. Machiavelli, N. (1970). The speeches. London, England: Penguin.