Freedom v. Power

1. Freedom v. Power POSC 120 Introduction to Politics and Political Analysis Braunwarth

2. Liberty v. Order • Politics essentially decides the tradeoff between Order and Freedom • We like both but can’t have maximum amounts of both • Where this tradeoff lies is the central feature of any political system

3. Power • Political Science differs from other sciences in part because of its emphasis on power (Machiavelli) • Politics determines how power will be exercised; Politics Matters • Will we go to war? Who will Fight? • Who have to pay taxes and who will avoid them? • Public Policy allows for the repeated exercise of power

4. Thoreau • Thoreau has a low opinion of the common man who needs to create a government to tell him what to do even when he knows such actions to be unjust • How is this situation similar to One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest? • Thoreau feels we have an obligation to disobey such directives from such governments. Do you agree with both his assessment of the common man and the government created by such men? • He feels that working within the system only perpetuates a system that tries to keep citizens fearful and insecure thus inhibiting their ability to gain the strength and wisdom necessary for the challenges of liberty

5. Thoreau • Have you ever felt your government acted unjustly? How did you respond? • What would you have done if you lived in Concord during Thoreau’s time? • Thoreau maintains that once individuals are ready to act according to their conscience they will no longer need or want government • Assuming we have not reached that point yet, how are Thoreau’s ideas relevant to contemporary democratic action? • Thoreau can also be read as a lesson for necessity of citizens to be active and vigilant to protect their freedom from the encroachment of government power • How is this similar to the situation on the Ward?

6. Civil Disobedience Must Be: 1. Peaceful; why? • If violent, will be repressed violently 2. Selectively aimed at outrageous moral evil; why not just attack position of the rulers? • Will respond violently to protect themselves 3. Disobedience must be public; why? • Need to make moral partisans of the neutral and indifferent 4. Must be prepared to pay the price

7. Civil Disobedience • Why did McMurphy fail? • Resorted to Violence • Examples of Other Failures? • Socialist Movement, critics of Globalism/WTO; why? • Attacked position of rulers • Did Thoreau succeed? Why or why not? • Ultimately he was not able to generate support of the masses • Examples of success stories? • Civil Rights Movement, Women’s Suffrage, Women’s Movement, Labor Movement

8. The Ideal Versus the Real in Plato’s Republic • Thrasymachus, the realist, is a sophist. • A sophist is one who taught the skills necessary for political success. • A sophist does not teach ethics. • Socrates is the idealist. • The purpose of politics is the happiness of the citizenry. • Who has the stronger point? • Politics is about the ongoing struggle between realists and idealists. • How is Socrates like Thoreau?

9. Madison • Madison’s problem was how to balance liberty and authority/order • How does Nurse Ratched address this problem? • Would you run things differently? • Madison recognized the need for authority and order but wanted a system that preserved much freedom and liberty • What was the prevailing view on this question for a large state in Madison’s time? • What was Madison’s creative solution? • An extensive federal republic (state governments plus a powerful central government that derived power from the people with constitutional limitations on that power)

10. Escape From Freedom • Why would people choose to “escape from freedom” (Fromm)? • Freedom requires the wisdom and strength to make responsible decisions • Can we trust people to make such choices when times are bad and people are fearful or are they likely to choose a democratic despot that plays on those fears and insecurities?

11. The German Citizen in the Nazi Regime and Responsible Citizenship Severe, adverse conditions in a society can threaten freedom. How bad were the conditions in Germany in 1932? • 1.7 million German solders had died in World War I • 225,000 civilians had died • Out of a population of 60 million, 6 to 8 million Germans were unemployed • Germany struggled under heavy war reparations, as well as under the global depression

12. Key Questions: • How bad do you think the strain on German society was? • Was the strain sufficient to warrant voting for the Nazis? • As a German citizen, would you have supported Adolf Hitler’s Nazi Party in 1932 and 1933?