2005: The Year We Questioned Authority

Andrew Sullivan has a great column in Time about why 2005 was a great year for democracy-

The Year We Questioned Authority-

For President Bush and other public figures, it was the end of the free pass

In mid-January 2005, President Bush declared that the 2004 election had been his "accountability moment." He spoke a bit too soon. The "moment," it turned out, lasted for the following 12 months. The President didn't see it coming. And who could blame him? For more than three years after 9/11, the American public had given the Administration, and indeed many authority figures, the benefit of the doubt. We were at war, even in mortal danger. Trust was essential. The bigwigs kept assuring us they knew what they were doing. And so most of us went along.

2005 was the year we stopped going along.

....

We tend to think democracies come truly alive only when we elect or throw out a President or Congressman or Senator. But the truth is that sometimes the democratic spirit is more vibrant in the intervals. Democracy is rooted in the impertinent belief that our rulers are no better than we are and that they are answerable always. We're occasionally amazed to discover that people who are used to power forget that. That's why, every now and again, we have to remind them. In that sense, 2005 was a great year for democracy. Because it was reborn this time after the votes were counted.