I like the term "representative government" better than Democracy. It is closer to what people hope for as the ideal. Representative government also broadens the field away from the mechanics of how a government functions to the relationship between that government and the people within the territory it controls. In other words, a monarchy or an autocracy can be more representative than a Democracy. A good monarch (these have existed in history) is a good representative of the goals of the people he/she rules. He/she enacts policies and strategies that benefit the nation.

Democracy / non-Democracy is a moot point. Are the rules the people must live by ones that make sense and lead to social harmony and increased opportunity?

Our system very clearly does not provide that. The mechanics of the system are broken. Is is Democratic? It's actually impossible to tell. But is it representative? Absolutely not. We know this because of the many polls demonstrating for years that the people say the country is going in the wrong direction.

All systems are to one extent or another oligarchies. The question is always just how much of the wealth of the nation is that oligarchy going to siphon versus how much will be left in the hands of the unconnected. We left behind any semblance of balance on that score twenty years ago, and the acceleration of the injustice and tyranny since then is jaw dropping.