[quote=Darcs]
Peisistratos wasn't even a tyrant, though. His reign was seen as moderate and similar to a constitutional government. Also, in fearing tyrants, you aren't fearing a style of government, you're fearing human nature.People aren't inherently one thing or another, and where tyrants crop up, others will crop up to oppose them----AND THAT'S A ROCK FACT.
[/quote]

In re Peisistratus, he was anti-democratic. He got stuff done. And when he died, his sons ruled dictatorially.

Dionysus I of Syracuse was a popularly chosen bad tyrant.

Absolutely tyrants are part of human nature, but what convinces people to accept a tyrant?

1. Security concerns. Your micro democracies are essentially unable to defend themselves, so very rapidly if not actually reform the United States they will make alliances and engage in offensive-neorealistic conquests. The United States today is without peer, consequently, we don't engage in "War of the Spanish Succesion" style wars of containment, nor do we constantly subjugate like Napoleonic France. When we had ONE peer in the USSR, the world was worse as a result.

2. Identity politics. The more identities there are, the harder it is to appease enough of them to ride them into power.