I'd like to ask Daniel Hannan...

Mr Daniel Hannan is undoubtedly the most intelligent and articulate MEP currently on duty in Brussels. I read his brilliant blog for the Daily Telegraph (link on the left side of this page) nearly everyday. He is a member of the British Conservative Party, he is a virulent critic of the European Union, the NHS, and "the Lefties". You might think he is perfect - our Eurosceptic champion! There is, however, one major problem with his views. Namely - Daniel Hannan is a Democrat. Now I know his vision of democracy differs from the established one; he is a localist and wants democracy to work in as small and regional a way as possible. I support localism - anything that takes decision-making power from National or Global level governments is good. However, where does the democracy come in? Mr Hannan has repeatedly stated that he is a follower of the real Burkean Conservative way. Burke and Democracy don't mix! A Burkean democrat is a concept as outrageous as a "liberal democrat", something I discussed in an earlier post (here). Edmund Burke was a great critic of the French Revolution, a revolution led in the name of Rousseau and his egalitarian democratic ideals. What frustrates me most about Mr Hannan's views is that he has started to justify things based on whether a majority of people support them or not. Lately he did this in his discussion about Álvaro Uribe, the president of Colombia, being able to serve a third term as president due to popular support. Also, he has said that people should be given referendums about the Lisbon Treaty and if they reject it their voice should be heard and the treaty repealed. I, for one, don't see how referendums are relevant. If something like the Lisbon Treaty violated natural law then it must be rejected even if 100% of the people want it to take effect. I know that throughout history many Conservative Party leaders have agreed democracy is the way to go on government. Most famous was probably Winston Churchill ("Indeed, it has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except all those other forms that have been tried from time to time." - 1947) However, we are thinking human beings and just because a famous and great man said something in the past doesn't mean we should be parroting it today. In ages past many great men have said that the Earth was flat.
Of course Daniel Hannan and I disagree on multiple other things (he seems to have caught the "Friedman bug" when he studied economics), but democracy is most crucial.

Maybe someday I'll get to face Mr Hannan (it would be my honor!) and ask him the following question: How can a man so versed in philosophy of Law and Rights as yourself hold democracy as a legitimate system of government?