This article published in Press & Guide is written by Thomas L. Knapp. Here is an excerpt:

American politicians love to boast of their nation’s status as the world’s premier “representative democracy,” and to lecture other, presumably less enlightened, countries on the importance of representative political institutions.

Going by the numbers (which admittedly don’t tell the whole story), there’s good reason to question whether such preening is justified.

Among the world’s states, the United States ranks third in population, but 25th in the number of members comprising its national legislative bodies.

Read the full article through this link.