Political Culture and Ideology

4. Political Culture and Ideology Chapter 4

5. Political Culture • Term used by political scientist to refer to the widely shared beliefs, values, and norms concerning the relationship of citizens to government and to one another.

6. American Ideals • Liberty • Equality • Individualism • Democracy • Justice • The rule of law • Patriotism • Optimism • Idealism

7. Shared Values • Natural Rights: the rights of all people of dignity and worth. • Liberty: • the freedom to act or believe without being stopped by unnecessary force. • Equality: • commonly refers to the idea of equal treatment.

8. Shared Values • Individualism: • is the moral stance, political philosophy, or social outlook that stresses independence and self-reliance. • Respect for the Common Person: • Faith in common sense and collective wisdom of ordinary people

9. Where did we learn it? • Family • Public Schools • Colleges and Universities • Religious Freedom and Diversity • Mass Media • Daily Show

10. TheAmericanDream

11. Capitalism • An economic system characterized by private property, competitive markets, economic incentives, and limited government involvement in the production and pricing of goods and services.

12. Reality • Bigger gap between rich and poor • More than we admit the family you are born into will affect your chances for success

13. Political and Economic Change • Political values affected by historical developments and economic and technological growth

14. Some Changes • Suffrage • Elections and Nominations • Political Equality • Participation in politics

15. The Industrial Transformation • Brought upon the inequality in distribution of wealth • Monopolies and antitrust legislation

16. The Great Depression and the New Deal • No restraints or regulation lead to collapse • FDR’s New Deal • Idea that governments, federal and state, should ensure some measure of equal opportunity and social justice

17. Bill of Rights: Part II • FDR’s 1944 State of the Union Address • Firm commitment to “economic security and independence” • Kennedy and LBJ continue with civil and voting rights movements • Today we support semi-regulated or mixed free enterprise

18. Political Ideology and Attitudes Toward Government • Political Ideology: refers to a consistent pattern of ideas or beliefs about political values and the role of government.

19. Schools of Ideology • Conservatism • Liberalism • Socialism • Environmentalism • Libertarianism

20. Liberalism • Original liberals fought to minimize the role of government. • Contemporary liberals refer to a belief in the positive uses of government to bring about justice and equality of opportunity

21. Liberalism • Modern-day liberals wish to preserve individual rights, but allow government to intervene to remedy the defects of capitalism

22. Criticism of Liberalism • Too much reliance on governmental solutions, higher taxes, and bureaucracy • Loss of self-help ethic • Labels like “liberal democrat” or “new democrat”

23. Conservatism • Want to enhance individual liberty by keeping government small, especially the national government, with the exception of national defense.

24. Tend to be more pessimistic about human nature People to blame for their own failures, should solve their own problems. Conservatism

25. Traditional Conservatives • Emphatically pro-business • Favor tax cuts, resist majority of antitrust, trade, and environmental regulations • Only want protection from foreign enemies • Human needs met by families and charities

26. Social Conservatives • Strong government action to protect children from pornography and drugs • Against abortion and gay marriage • AKA New Right, or Ultraconservatives

27. Criticisms of Conservatism • Urge more government only for their needs • School vouchers, prescription choice, social security choices • Too much faith in market economy • Lower taxes for “trickle down theory”

28. Socialism • An economic and governmental system based on public ownership of the means of production and exchange

29. Socialism • Marx called the transition between capitalism and communism • Increased government • Higher tax on wealthy • Public jobs program • Cut defense spending

30. Environmentalism • An intense concern with the environment and related matters • Represented by Green Party • In the U.S. focus on social justice, equal opportunity, nonviolence, feminism, respect for diversity, grassroots democracy

31. Ralph Nader got the party attention in 2000 Presidential Election Still won less than 3% of the general vote 2004 candidate David Cobb less than 1/10 of 1% Supports gay marriage, tougher stance on polluters, and slave reparations Environmentalism

32. Political ideology that cherishes individual liberty and insists on sharply limited government Some overtones of anarchism Attractive to people who believe liberals and conservatives not consistent enough in their attitude towards national government. Libertarianism

33. Libertarianism • No more FBI, CIA, most regulatory commissions, and huge budget cuts • A candidate has been on the ballot in recent presidential elections in all 50 states, but again received less than 1% of the vote

34. Political Ideology and the American People • For some people improving schools, encouraging stronger work ethic, and stopping drug flow • Others homosexuals in the military, or same sex marriage, morals, build character, family structure

35. Political Ideology and the American People • PEOPLE ARE IN THE MIDDLE

36. Ideology and Tolerance • Everyone is intolerant of everyone…sort of….kind of • We are mostly in the middle, but find it difficult to see eye to eye on specific issues