Depends what you mean by democratic. If you mean people can vote, then yes. But if it means ruled by the people then I only see elites at the top.

I'm disillusioned with the western narrative about freedom. We can and should do much better than the oligarchies we actually live in.

Don't get me wrong, I don't think the rest of the world has it better than us, but we're certainly not the paradise we pretend to be.

I'll take a mostly democratic world over an openly despotic one a la the CCP.

Me too. But the fact that our prison is shinier than the neighbors isn't enough to make me proud living in it.