Socrates became unpopular in Athens for various reasons. Athens instilled democracy in its government. Unlike the representative democracies of most republics in modern society, Athens was a direct democracy. Socrates was known for not supporting this type of direct democracy, as he had little faith in the common man to consider the complex matters of government. He believed in the rule of a group of "philosopher kings." Socrates never ran for political office, but he often participated in debates. Socrates quickly gained a reputation for questioning the wisdom of city leaders. He asked difficult philosophical questions that usually strayed from the topics at hand. He thought he was asking questions like, “How do we know this is true?” or "How can we live a good