One sees the paradox of the fully active citizen in a number of ways: For example, the person on the Left may vote for his opposition views, but the Right wins the election and controls the government. The Leftist may be so very convinced and passionate in his views that he tries to block the Right’s government from carrying out its policies.
Paradox: Voting and civil debate are supposed to be means to discuss matters, once decided all should work towards a common goal, yet there is a huge chance that the leftist party members would rather try to move their agenda even if it was by means of blocking the government and shutting everything down. This example is just one, of course the party and ideological roles can very much be reversed.
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