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GOVERNMENT BASICS NOTES

GOVERNMENT BASICS NOTES. What is government?. Government is the institution through which a society makes and enforces its public policies. What are public policies?.

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GOVERNMENT BASICS NOTES

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  1. GOVERNMENT BASICSNOTES What is government?

  2. Government is the institution through which a society makes and enforces its public policies. What are public policies?

  3. a system of laws, regulatory measures, courses of action, and funding priorities concerning a given topic publicized by a governmental entity or its representatives PUT SIMPLEY Public Policies are those things government decides to do and how they do them What are some examples of Public Policies? What is Public Policy?

  4. Examples of Public Policies Setting minimum wage Environmental regulations Raising/maintaining a military Collecting income tax Providing Transportation Compulsory Education Welfare and Medicare

  5. What is the STATE? The state is a body of people, living in a defined territory, organized politically, and having the power to make and enforce laws without having the consent of a higher authority. The FOUR Characteristics of State

  6. Characteristics of the State • Population- the state must have people • Territory - must have land with recognized boundaries • Sovereignty – must have absolute and supreme power within its territory • Government – must have an institution that makes and enforces public policy

  7. Origins of State • Force Theory • Evolutionary Theory • Divine Right Theory • Social Contract Theory

  8. The FORCE Theory a person or group of people take control of an area and its people by way of force (military)

  9. The EVOLUTIONARY Theory States developed out of the basic family unit. Extended family units would then develop as would a head of the family. Family networks would then be created and the head of the family would evolve into the head of state.

  10. The DIVINE RIGHT Theory A “higher power” is responsible for the creation of the state and gives certain individuals or groups the “right” to rule.

  11. The SOCIAL CONTRAT Theory (based on the philosophical teachings of Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau in the 1600 & 1700’s) This theory functions on the idea that along with free will comes the reality of the necessity to survive, which can often be brutal and violent. Therefore, the Social Contract Theory proposes that people give up their aggressive nature (power) to the state in exchange for the state’s service to the general well being of the people. The state only exists to serve the will of the people!

  12. Thomas HOBBES • Believed that human beings in a “State of Nature” would behave "badly" towards one another • Any person has a natural right to do anything to preserve their own liberty or safety • War is not in man's best interest • According to Hobbes, man has a self-interested and materialistic desire to end or avoid war and enter into a social contract • Hobbes theory ignores the fact that most people are not born into a “state of nature”

  13. State of Nature • A term used in social contract theories to describe the hypothetical condition of humanity before the state's foundation • In a broader sense, it is the condition before the rule of positive law comes into being, thus being a synonym of anarchy

  14. John LOCKE • Like Hobbes, Locke believed that human nature allowed men to be selfish • Unlink Hobbes, Locke believed that human nature is characterized by reason and tolerance – people are born good • In a natural state all people are equal and independent, and none have the right to harm another’s “life, health, liberty, or possessions.” – lends to the social contract

  15. Jean-Jacques ROUSSEAU • Unlike Hobbes & Locke, Rousseau believed that people were born pure • Man’s bad habits are the products of civilization specifically social hierarchies, property, and markets • Rousseau claimed that the state of nature was a primitive condition without law or morality, which human beings left for the benefits and necessity of cooperation (social contract).

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