A democracy functions under freedom of movement, speech, self-defense, self-reliance, etc
If the people can’t move, are censored, can’t support themselves and must support the government… you’re not free or in a democracy.
Not to nit pick, but while I'm picking nits. What you refer to is liberal democracy. Karl Popper explained this very well in his book Conjectures And Refutations:
> The difference between a democracy and a tyranny is that under a democracy the government can be got rid of without bloodshed; under a tyranny it cannot.
> Democracy as such cannot confer any benefits upon the citizen and it should not be expected to do so. In fact democracy can do nothing—only the citizens of the democracy can act (including, of course, those citizens who comprise the government). Democracy provides no more than a framework within which the citizens may act in a more or less organized and coherent way.
> We are democrats, not because the majority is always right, but because democratic traditions are the least evil ones of which we know. If the majority (or ‘public opinion’) decides in favour of tyranny, a democrat need not therefore suppose that some fatal inconsistency in his views has been revealed. He will realize, rather, that the democratic tradition in his country was not strong enough.
If people in Switzerland choose a government that restricts their movement, this is what they should get, and if they don't get that, democracy is broken.
People would select my cat as a president if "properly" prepared
If you put everything up for a vote, it's easily becomes a situation where most people are happy on individual issues, but no one is happy on average of all the issues.
https://twitter.com/ShellenbergerMD/status/16048716306137538...
I mean I get where they're coming from - in the Netherlands, they couldn't stop people coming together for house parties / gatherings so they installed a curfew - but it felt draconic and like they didn't have a plan. Every time they announced new restrictions or lifting them it felt arbitrary.
Self-defense is a debatable one. It's not working in the US for example - how many crimes and deaths are prevented because of the 2nd amendment rights? All I hear is victims of gun violence.
Anyway. People can move, just not in an EV, if it's empty and can't be charged due to grid restrictions. People aren't censored, they're just not platformed if their opinion is shit - freedom of speech / expression is not a requirement to be platformed. You aren't told to support the government, you can vote for something else. However, you are expected to behave under the laws, and you may disagree with them, etc - just be aware of the consequences.
If you feel like you live in a totalitarian state - and I understand that people would if they live in the US - you can always move. That's the other freedom of movement you enjoy, the freedom to leave the country if you don't like it.
Also, telling people they can "simply move" if they want more rights is sort of like Marie Antoinette's quip about telling them to "eat cake".
Depends. People could vote against emergency laws now, but since most people are ok with that mechanism, it is democratic. And I say that as someone who is not ok with those laws. But I can accept that the majority thinks otherwise.
And in general, switzerland with their tradition of direct democracy and consensus is certainly more democratic than most other states.