11. On Public Opinion:Following public opinion is democracy; indulging it is tyranny.

Every individual possesses their own will, making choices and taking actions according to their own desires. When many people gather, though each person's specific will may differ greatly, among these diverse wills there must be some that are shared. This shared will constitutes public opinion.

From a temporal perspective, public opinion can be categorized into three types.

The first type is eternal public opinion. For example, people universally desire security for their lives and property, personal freedom, and judicial fairness. Such opinions remain identical across all eras and nations, thus constituting eternal public opinion.

The second type is public sentiment specific to a particular era. For instance, in a nation experiencing turmoil, people generally hope to end the unrest and restore social order. In a poor country, people commonly aspire to economic development and prosperity. This type of sentiment evolves with the times and thus belongs to the category of era-specific public sentiment.

Another type is public sentiment that arises temporarily. For instance, following the Sun Zhigang incident, people widely demanded a thorough investigation into the case, punishment for the perpetrators, and the abolition of the "Measures for Detention and Repatriation." Such sentiment is often triggered by a specific social event, gathering rapidly but also dissipating quickly, thus being temporary in nature.

Through the above analysis, we can conclude that at any given time, there exists a common will shared by all individuals, and this common will is discernible. Therefore, public sentiment not only exists but can also be ascertained.

Since public sentiment can be ascertained, democracy can be realized, for the essence of democracy is to implement the will of the people. When a nation's power is exercised in accordance with public sentiment, that nation has achieved democracy.

However, democracy does not equate to absolute compliance with public sentiment, as some expressions of public will are inherently anti-democratic, though the populace may remain unaware of this. For instance, driven by the self-interested nature of human beings, people desire immortality, seek gains without effort, aspire to inherit wealth, and crave privileges. These are also wills shared by the vast majority and, in essence, represent public sentiment. Yet, if such sentiments are indulged and pandered to, the outcome will inevitably be anti-democratic. Throughout history, all authoritarian and tyrannical regimes have exploited such public sentiment to consolidate power. Thus, indulging public sentiment inevitably leads to tyranny.

To prevent tyranny, democracy requires the rule of law—using legal frameworks to curb anti-democratic sentiment and realize democratic public will. Even so, individuals may still exploit anti-democratic sentiment to enact laws opposing democracy. Therefore, democracy perpetually needs martyrs to resist anti-democratic sentiment. For democracy, martyrs sacrifice their political futures, personal interests, and even their lives. Yet these martyrs of democracy will ultimately shine brightly on the path of democracy. They are its beacons, forever illuminating the direction of its progress.