> For the record, I think of democracy as a strictly positive thing even when it seems like democratic societies have erred.

Thats a surprising thing to think without justification. To hold up a mirror, imagine if someone said the same thing about china's communism:

> For the record, I think of China's communist system as a strictly positive thing even when it seems like the CCP has erred.

There was a great quote by Bill Clinton - "The problem with ideology is that it gives you the answer before you've asked the question."