In a democracy, the minority cedes power to the majority on the assumption that the majority has a better claim to be in the right. Just as important, the majority makes the same assumption, for otherwise it would not allow itself to be turned out of power merely for losing an election. Civil Society and the Limits of Knowledge This system of government, which is the political expression of civil society, is therefore grounded in a spirit of humility that recognizes the limits of our knowledge. That spirit is also the spirit of modern science, but it was not always this way. It was this definition of science as a superior way to certain truth that led Karl Marx to call his version of socialism an improvement on prior interpretations, and which led to the tragedy that followed when his ideas were put into practice.
Modern science takes a different view.
This more humble approach to the possibilities of science is also enshrined in Heisenberg's principle of uncertainty, which Jacob Bronowski renamed the principle of tolerance. And what holds true for science is equally true for all other fields of human endeavor. This recognition of the limits of our knowledge has two implications for civil society. First, it means that government must also be limited. According to the American Founders, democracy did not mean the election of a government that had total power.