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Many countries include 'Democratic' or 'People's' in their names, even though they are not democratic and do not serve their people. Examples: Democratic People's Republic of Korea Lao People's Democratic Republic People's Democratic Republic of Algeria Democratic Republic of the Congo And German Democratic Republic (East Side) in 1949–1990. None of these states are democratic, power and wealth are concentrated in the hands of a small ruling elite. Who are they fooling with these names?
Boy wait until you find out the "Patriot Act" was actually about the government spying on you. It's like politics 101 to give things names that aren't at all related, but sound good.
And what does it have to do with the subject of the post? How does it help the OP?
I'll just go ahead and answer your question.
The Patriot Act has absolutely nothing to do with patriotism. In practice, it expanded government surveillance and law-enforcement powers in ways that raised serious constitutional, civil-liberties, and human-rights concerns.
It was called the Patriot Act because that's an appealing name. Nobody is going to call something the Government Surveillance and Expanded Executive Powers Act and expect people to get excited about it. The name is part of the political optics.
You see the same thing with authoritarian governments naming institutions and policies things like "Democratic," "People's," "National," or "for the Protection of the Country." The terminology is deliberately positive because governments understand that optics matter.
What I've never understood is what governments actually think their populations believe. At a certain point, everyone knows they're playing the same political game. Governments are playing political chess against one another, politicians are managing their public image, and the population is largely treated as the audience rather than a participant.
The irony is that governments seem to assume people are too stupid to recognize the obvious propaganda. In reality, most people understand that a government calling something "patriotic," "democratic," or "for the people" doesn't automatically make it any of those things.
The subject of the post is "why do authoritarian states have words like 'democratic' or 'people's' when they are not actually democratic or for people? Yes? Would you agree with that?
Politics 101 is giving something a name that does not relate to the actual political thing you are doing. Naming a party, passing a bill, etc. The patriot act was an example i had off the top of my head.
Thought the connection was incredibly clear but I guess not.
Oh, it's very clear. But you need to ask that type of question to drive engagement and feed the echo chambers. How else can users feel morally superior? And it's far easier for users to respond than to actually do.