Civil war broke out in Egypt. Its people are rebelling against Hosni Mubarak's regime and demanding a new government that represents the interests of the Egyptian people. Every modern revolt imitates the countless revolts that occurred in the times of ancient Athens and Rome. The population rises up to overthrow their oppressors who fight for freedom, but is freedom, democracy really the solution? Democracy, by definition, is a government in which power derives from its people. With democracy comes the ability of the masses to run government for the benefit of the common man; one who directly experiences the effects of his decisions. However, if these masses became destructive in any way, a democratic society would fail. There are many motivations behind democracy, ranging from attempting to simply alter some aspects of democracy to attempting to abolish its existence entirely. Behind every criticism there is a philosopher; one who states one's opinions about how society should function. Two great minds in particular spoke out convincingly against the creation of democracy and subsequently provided the government with solutions and alternatives that they believed were flawed. Each presented teachings and writings that pushed every compliant citizen to question their role in society and reconsider the conventions established under the fallacy they believed democracy to be. Although numerous philosophers criticized democracy, both Plato, through his argument for the establishment of an oligarchy, and Polybius, whose writings showed a Roman constitution that divided powers among three integral types of the governed, established some of the most explicit to democratic government. Above all, the Roman solution is the most relevant to the subse...... middle of paper ......efficiently. Although the modification of the individual seems more in keeping with Plato's philosophical thought, it still served to establish the qualities by which political leaders are judged today. Furthermore, Polybius, through his analysis of the Roman constitution, noted a solution to the trap of ochlocracy: a more intelligent populace. The Roman solution to this was somewhat simpler. Instead of altering the population's perception, it simply took the power out of their hands. He took the qualities of each of the three integral types of government and created a system remarkably similar to our modern “checks and balances.” Through its constitution, Rome established a society that served as a model for all great empires. Rome had achieved the impossible by creating an empire so vast that it set a precedent for all future societies.