I kind of doubt there was an era of a trustworthy democracy. At best, it worked OK for a significant minority--and maybe that acceptance was sufficient enough trust to hold the society together. . But as we can see, the glue is cracking--even among the demographics who used to benefit.

I have on my clipboard a link to my latest Prez 47 message. Francesco is the hero of this story.

https://medium.com/politically-speaking/secretary-of-junior-assistant-dog-catchers-cefa215c6472