What is wrong with our democracy?

[Dr Q]

Ignorance, Demagoguery, Corruption, Mob Rule.  What do we have to lose if we give up on our values?  Check out what is happening right now in Venezuela.

I see the history of our country as lurching forward after things get really bad, like the Civil War, the Great Depression, World War II, the Great Recession, but most of the time slowly sinking into corruption.  Things have to get really bad before people are not fooled by well-funded propaganda.

Overall, we have made progress, but this can't be taken for granted.  Sooner or later all nations fail.  Maybe the next lurch forward will come when Trump's mob realizes they've been conned.  Maybe it will be too late by then.  The debt has put us at the edge of bankruptcy.  We may not have enough reserve to pull out of the next nose dive.

I've heard it said, our democracy is bad until you compare it to any alternative.  Still, I like to speculate about what fundamental changes would make it better.  I like the idea of one-person-one-vote, but I think that gives too much weight to ignorance and gullibility.  I don't like the current Republican efforts at voter suppression, but sometimes I think, if a person is not motivated enough to get a voter ID, should I care if they don't vote?

Here's an idea.  Every person gets one vote, but that vote is cast by their representative.  Even if they have no money and no education, their representative is still working for their long-term best interest.  A person can change representatives at any time, and there are 500 available, covering every point of view with any popular support.  Representatives must be qualified by demonstrating knowledge of history and science, but beyond understanding of facts and logic, they can have any opinion or beliefs they want, even contradicting the facts.  Campaigning is publicly funded, with each rep getting a dollar for each of their current constituents.  Political parties are numerous, with no one being dominant. There are no districts, no gerrymandering, just complete freedom for citizens to assign their vote to whatever rep they chose.