Chapter 4 Section 3

1. Chapter 4Section 3 Political and Economic Systems

2. Objectives: • Identify Levels of Government • List Types of Government

3. Features of Government • The world is made up of nearly 200 independent countries that vary in size, military might, natural resources, and world influence. • Each country is defined by many characteristics that are brought together under a government. • In carrying out its tasks, a government must make and enforce policies and laws that are binding on all people within its territory.

4. Levels of Government • Levels of government have unique characteristics that relate to that country’s historical development. • To carry out its functions, government has been organized in a variety of ways. • Most large countries have several different levels of government, which usually include a national or central government as well as the governments of smaller divisions such as provinces, states, counties, cities, towns and villages.

5. Unitary System • A unitary system of government gives all key powers to the national or central government. • This DOES NOT mean that only one level of government exists. Rather, it means that the central government creates state, provincial, or other local governments and gives them limited sovereignty. • Both the U.K. and France developed this form of government as they emerged from smaller territories during the late Middle ages into early modern times.

6. Federal System • A federal system of government divides the powers of government between the national government and state or provincial governments. • The United States developed a federal system after the thirteen colonies became independent.

7. Another type of government structure is a confederation, a loose union of independent territories. • The United States at first formed a confederation, but this type of political arrangement failed to provide an effective national government. • As a result, the U.S. Constitution made the national government supreme, while preserving some state government powers. • Today, other countries with a federal or confederal systems include Canada, Switzerland, Mexico, Brazil, Australia, and India.

8. Types of Government • All of governments belong to one of the three major groups. • Autocracy • Oligarchy • Democracy

9. Autocracy • Any system of government where the power and authority to rule belong to a single individual is called an autocracy. • Autocracies are the oldest and one of the most common forms of government. • Most autocrats achieve and maintain their position of authority through inheritance or by the ruthless use of military or police power.

10. Several forms of autocracy exist. • One is absolute or totalitarianism dictatorship. • In this form of government, the decisions of a single leader determine government policies. • This government seeks to control all aspect of social and economic life. • Examples include Adolf Hitler’s government in Nazi Germany (1933-1945), Benito Mussolini’s rule in Italy (1922-1943) and Joseph Stalin’s regime in the Soviet Union (1924-1953) • In such dictatorships, the government is not responsible to the people, and the people have no power to limit their rulers actions.

11. Closure: • What did you learn today?

12. Objectives: • Evaluate Political and Economic Systems • List Different Economic Systems • Evaluate Different Forms of Economic Systems

13. Monarchy • Another form of Autocratic government, with a king or queen exercising the supreme powers of government. • Monarchs usually inherit their positions. • Absolute monarchs have complete and unlimited power to rule their people • Example: the king of Saudi Arabia • Absolute monarchs are rare today. Most countries have constitutional monarchies.

14. Oligarchy • System of government where a small group holds power, derived from wealth, military power, social position, or a combination of these elements. • Sometimes dictatorships and oligarchies claim they rule the same people, giving the appearance of control by the people. • Oligarchies usually suppress political opposition.

15. Democracy • Any form of government where leaders rule with the consent of the people. • Direct democracy exist at some places at local levels, but no country has a direct democracy on a national level. • Many democratic countries, such as the U.S. and France, are republics, where voters elect all major officials. • Not every democracy is a republic. • Example: United Kingdom

16. Economic Systems • All economic systems must make three basic economic decisions. • What and how many goods and services should be produced. • How they should get produced. • Who gets the goods and services that all produced.

17. Traditional Economy • In a traditional economy, habit and custom determine the rules for all economic activity. • Individuals cannot decide what they would like to have, it is defined by their elders and ancestors. • Example: Inuit society of northern Canada had a tradition that a successful hunter would share with others in the village.

18. Market Economy • Individuals and private groups make decisions about what to produce. • People, as consumers and shoppers, chose what products they will and will not buy, and businesses make more of what they believe people want. • A market economy is based on free enterprise. • Free enterprise is the idea that private individuals or groups have the right to own property or businesses and make a profit with only limited government interferences. • Another term for this is capitalism.

19. No country in the world has a pure market economy. • Today, the U.S. and other countries have a mixed economy, one in which the government supports and regulates free enterprise through decisions that affect the marketplace. • Governments also influence their economies by spending tax revenue, to support social services such as health care, education, and housing.

20. Command Economy • In a command economy, the government owns or directs the means of production- land, labor, and capital (machinery and factories), and business managers all control the distribution of goods. • Countries with command economies try to distribute goods and services equally among citizens. • Command economy is either called socialism or communism, depending on how much the government is involved.

21. Communism • In theory, communism requires strict government control of all areas of society, including the economy. • Government decides how much, what and how to produce and distribute goods . • Supports of the market system claim that without free decision making and incentives, businesses will not innovate or produce products people want, limiting customers and stagnating the economy. • An example is the former Soviet Union,

22. Socialism • Socialism allows for a wider range of free enterprise alongside government-run activities. • Socialism has three main goals: • The distribution of wealth and economic opportunity • Society’s control, through its government, of all major decisions about production • Public ownership of most land, factories, and other means of production.

23. Politically, some socialist countries, particularly those in western Europe, are democracies. • Under democratic socialism, people have basic human rights and elect their leaders, even though government controls certain industries.

24. Closure: • Geography Skills for Life

25. Homework • Page 90 1, 3-6