»Die Demokratie ist nicht perfekt«

Open, democratic societies can deliver more prosperity -- because when people are free to think for themselves and share ideas and discover and create -- the young people who are here, what they’re able to do through the Internet and technology, that’s when innovation is unleashed, when economies truly flourish.

Just as democracies are premised on the peaceful resolution of disagreements within our societies, we also believe that cooperation and dialogue is the best way to address challenges between nations.  And so it is my belief that democracies are more likely to try to resolve conflicts between nations in a way that does not result in war.

Now, democracy, like all human institutions, is imperfect.  It can be slow; it can be frustrating; it can be hard; it can be messy.  Politicians tend to be unpopular in democracies, regardless of party, because, by definition, democracies require that you don’t get a hundred percent of what you want.

But it is better than the alternatives because it allows us to peacefully work through our differences and move closer to our ideals.  It allows us to test new ideas and it allows us to correct for mistakes.  Any action by a President, or any result of an election, or any legislation that has proven flawed can be corrected through the process of democracy. 

And as you may have noticed, the next American president and I could not be more different.  (Applause.)  We have very different points of view, but American democracy is bigger than any one person.  (Applause.) 

And that’s why, as hard as it can be sometimes, it’s important for young people, in particular, who are just now becoming involved in the lives of their countries, to understand that progress follows a winding path -- sometimes forward, sometimes back -- but as long as we retain our faith in democracy, as long as we retain our faith in the people, as long as we don’t waver from those central principles that ensure a lively, open debate, then our future will be okay, because it remains the most effective form of government ever devised by man. 

I have argued that the current path of globalization demands a course correction.  In the years and decades ahead, our countries have to make sure that the benefits of an integrated global economy are more broadly shared by more people, and that the negative impacts are squarely addressed. 

So, just as we have to have an inclusive economic strategy, we have to have an exclusive political and cultural strategy.  In all of our capitals, we have to keep making government more efficient, more effective in responding to the daily needs to citizens.  Governing institutions, whether in Athens, Brussels, London, Washington, have to be responsive to the concerns of citizens.  People have to know that they're being heard.

It's not somebody else's job, it's not somebody else's responsibility, but it's the citizens of our countries and citizens of the world to bend that arc of history towards justice. 

And that’s what democracy allows us to do.  That's why the most important office in any country is not president or prime minister.  The most important title is "citizen".