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Theories and Origins of Government

Theories and Origins of Government. I. Theories of Government. Evolution Theory A population formed out of primitive families. The heads of these families became the government. When these families settled in one territory and claimed it as their own, they became a sovereign state.

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Theories and Origins of Government

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  1. Theories and Origins of Government

  2. I. Theories of Government • Evolution Theory • A population formed out of primitive families. The heads of these families became the government. When these families settled in one territory and claimed it as their own, they became a sovereign state. • Force Theory • An individual or group claimed control over a territory and forced the population to submit. In this way, the state became sovereign, and those in control formed a government.

  3. Theories of Government • Divine Right Theory • God created the state, making it sovereign. The government is made up of those chosen by God to rule a certain territory. The population must obey their ruler. • Social Contract Theory • A population in a given territory gave up as much power to a government as needed to promote the well-being of all. In doing so, they created a sovereign state.

  4. II. Contributions of the Greeks • Athenian Democracy or Direct Democracy • When: 508 BCE – 322 BCE • What: Also called pure democracy • Occurs when the will of the people translates directly into public policy • Works only on a small, • local level • Where:

  5. III. Contributions of the Romans • Roman Republic • When: 509 BCE – 27 BCE • What: • Classical Republicanism • Civic virtue • Moral education • Small, uniform communities

  6. So, what kind of government do we have in the U.S. today?

  7. English Origins of American Government The Magna Carta (1215) • King John is forced to sign by barons • Included guarantees of such fundamental rights as trial by jury and due process of law • Protection against absolute power

  8. EnglishOrigins of American Government The Petition of Right (1628) • King Charles I signed, by force of the Parliament • Limited king’s power • May not impose martial law • Can not force quartering • Punish only be laws of the land • Questioned Divine Right No man should be “compelled to make or yield any gift, loan, benevolence, tax, or such like charge, without common consent by act of parliament.”

  9. English Government – Parliament Arrives • Parliament was a council of nobility created to advise the monarch. • History of hostility between parliament and monarch. • Parliament = House of Lords + House of Commons • House of Lords- nobility • House of Commons - wealthy and people of standing in community-knights, merchants, craftsmen.

  10. English Origins of American Government The English Bill of Rights (1689) • Signed by William and Mary of Orange during the Glorious Revolution • Prohibited a standing army in peace time • Required free parliamentary elections

  11. John Locke, 1632-1704

  12. John Locke’s Natural Rights Philosophy • State of Nature • Natural Rights • Human Nature • Purpose of Government • Social Contract Theory

  13. Pure Democracy and Crowdsourcing • What is crowdsourcing? • Definition • Examples

  14. Pure Democracy and Crowdsourcing • Pros of Delegating Decision-making: • Efficient • Expert quality • Pros of Pure Democracy: • Equality • Representational quality

  15. Who should decide? • The Math: Condorcet's jury theorem • One of the two outcomes of the vote is correct, and each voter has an independent probability p of voting for the correct decision. The theorem asks how many voters we should include in the group. The result depends on whether p is greater than or less than 1/2: • If p is greater than 1/2 (each voter is more likely than not to vote correctly), then adding more voters increases the probability that the majority decision is correct. In the limit, the probability that the majority votes correctly approaches 1 as the number of voters increases. • On the other hand, if p is less than 1/2 (each voter is more likely than not to vote incorrectly), then adding more voters makes things worse: the optimal jury consists of a single voter.

  16. Testing the theory • Divide in half making 2 teams for chess • One team will vote on a representative to make all their decisions • The other will vote each day on their move. • If the “pure democracy” team wins, voters were more likely than not to make the correct decision and more voters creates better results.

  17. Questions to Consider • Should we all vote on more decisions? • Which branch of government would most appropriately be replaced by this system? • What are the problems with a pure democracy in America?

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