Most people think they’re right, that their political views are good, correct, fair. How does that work in an accountable democracy?

“Rightness” is not an absolute measure, it’s relative to ones point of view.  For instance, people who see equality as paramount easily view disparities as injustice.  People who view freedom as paramount can tolerate a fair amount of inequality. Either view can feel right.

In addition, rightness is basically a feeling we have. When I feel I’m right and others are wrong, my mind easily “sees” the problems with others’ arguments and points of view.

In a democracy, government should weigh the values of all people’s views. It needs to respect them and then at times choose rules or take actions that seem to honor some views more than others.

The foundation of accountability is giving an account of what happened and why. Without accountability, if your view doesn’t seem to be honored, you feel the government is wrong. But accountability can mitigate that. If your representative truly represents you, she knows that the solution doesn’t seem to honor your view. So in her report on the issue, she would. Perhaps the law contained exceptions or was made very specific in order to honor your view. Or perhaps a project is being rolled out first as a pilot project to ensure your concerns are addressed.

Without accountability, there’s a good chance you’d never find out. And if there is no accountability, a representative could easily overlook your concerns without consequence.

Without accountability, it’s easy to end up feeling I’m right and others are wrong, to feel frustrated, even to want nothing more to do with politics. But with accountability, hearing that my concerns were taken into account, I can more easily accept the verdict and keep participating. And by participating, I add my view, and my input, my wisdom.

With political accountability, being right becomes an essential part of the discourse, rather than a source of conflict. Hearing from our representatives about why they made the decisions they made is critical. It keeps people participating, which is essential for a healthy democracy.