What is democracy?

Imagine you are on a giant wooden ship in the middle of a dangerous, stormy ocean! Who should steer? Should it be a trained, expert captain who knows how to read the stars, or should all the passengers take a vote? In this brain-twisting episode, Mira and Finn travel back over two thousand years to Ancient Athens to answer a massive question: What is democracy, and is it really the fairest way to make decisions? Dive into the incredible mind of the philosopher Plato! In his famous book The Republic, Plato argued that only trained experts should be in charge—otherwise, it's like letting someone who just throws a good party fly an airplane! But the ancient Athenians believed that everyone living on the ship deserves a say in where it goes. Get ready for wild historical facts about how Athenians voted using broken pottery, picked leaders by random lottery, and the ultimate debate between knowing what is best versus doing what is fair! Will you choose Plato's expert captain, or will you vote with the passengers?