It might shock you, MDD, to find out that I am influenced by dealing with what exists in the here and now, not by what you think my political leaning is. First of all, you know nothing about me, and if you did, you would know that the New York Times and the mainstream media in general, and left wing politics in particular, are the opposite of my world view.
Quid pro quo in a democracy is a matter of simple menschlichkeit. People who live in liberal democracies take their freedoms for granted, and are often very quick to point out where someone else’s freedoms should end, thinking little about the cost/benefit analysis of their own participation.
I believe that you have to deal with the reality you live in, not act as if the one you imagine is already here. That means you have to deal with the democratic process if you live in a democracy. If you want to bring a Torah Hashkofah, like it or not you have to give the electorate a compelling reason to vote for it, and you have to honestly tell them, if you believe it to be so, that that is the last election they will ever have. Are you prepared to do that? Do you think you will get very far?
Lastly, Dina demalchusa dina applies, – especially for those who don’t look so kindly on the Medina, unless the Jews are being persecuted for being Jews (not asked to maintain their hashkofas and chumras without forcing them on others, but persecuted)and have no recourse to law or legislation.