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61 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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Politics
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Deciding who gets what, when, and how.
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Two things all governments do
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Tax and regulate your behavior
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How is government different than other institutions?
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Promotes public goods and provides goods and services that the private sector does not
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How does government relate to public goods?
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Distinguishes what is public and private
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What does it mean for a country to be truly democratic?
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(1) Recognition of the dignity of every individual; (2) Equal protection under the law for every individual; (3) Opportunity for everyone to participate in public decisions; and (4) Decision making by majority rule, with one person having one vote.
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Paradox of Democracy
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Potential for conflict between individual freedom and majority rule.
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Difference between Direct and Representative Democracy |
Direct Democracy means that every persons vote counts as one and Representative Democray means voting for a representative to make decisions |
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Pluralist Perspective
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Theory that democracy can be achieved through competition among multiple organized groups and that individuals can participate in politics through group memberships and elections.
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Elitist Perspective
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Political system in which power is concentrated in the hands of a relatively small group of individuals or institutions.
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Externalities
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Cost imposed on people who are not direct participants in an activity.
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Social contract
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Idea that government originates as an implied contract among individuals who agree to obey laws in exchange for protection of their rights.
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Direct Democracy
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Governing system in which every person participates actively in every public decision. The problem of coordinating information and voting on National Issues is deemed to complex.
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Difference between Pluralism and Elitism Perspective
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Pluralism is achieved through democracy while elitism doesn't allow citizens to vote, but allows only a small group of individuals who decide things
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Extraction/coercion Cycle
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extracting resources to make even more resources
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GDP (Gross Domestic Product)
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Measure of economic performance in terms of the nations total production of goods and services for a single year, valued in terms of market places.
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Political Science
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Study of politics, or the study of who gets what, when and how
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Income Transfers
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Government transfers of income from tax payers to persons regarded as deserving.
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Prisoners Dilemma
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A mathematical model of human interactions where human self-interest drives actors to both individually and collectively worse off
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Moore's Law
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Technology doubles every 24 months. MIT Authors argue that Americans must "Race with the Machine" because machines will replace peoples jobs unless Americans adapt better to technological living.
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Political Culture
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Shared ideas on who should govern, how they should govern, and what should be their goals
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Ideology
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Beliefs shared by a group of people
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Four main Ideologies
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Conservatives (Republicans), Modern Liberals (Democratics), Libertarians,Populists
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Characteristic's of these Ideologies
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Conservatives: Society-High, Economics-Low; Modern Liberals: Society-Low, Economics-High; Libertarians: Society-Low, Economics-Low;Populist: Society-High, Economics-High
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Where are we likely to see these Ideologies?
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Conservatives: Rural, Conservative, Rocky Mts.;Modern Liberals: Urban Areas, North East, West Coast;Libertarians: North Dakota, Alaska, Low population density, Montana; Populists:Midwest, Rustbelt
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How does that geographic dispersion affect citizen relationships with Political parties?
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United States has swing states which make it harder to estimate which candidate will win. Swing states have higher populations which means states change their mind frequently.
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Values
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Shared ideas about what is good and desirable
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Beliefs
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Shared ideas about what is true
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Main Political Values in the U.S.
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Equality, Liberty, Worth, and dignity of an individual; restrictions are not to interfere with the liberties of others.
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What happens when values do not match reality?
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Values do not matter and values show where someone wants to be.
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Equality of Opportunity and Equality of Results
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The elimination of artificial barriers to success in life; refers to the ability to make oneself what one can, to develop one's talents and abilities and to be rewarded in one's work, initiative, and achievement
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Classical Liberalism
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Political philosophy asserting the worth and dignity of the individual and emphasizing the rational ability of human beings to determine their own destinies.
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Social Mobility
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Extent to which people move upward or downward in income and status over a lifetime or over generations.
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Fascism
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Political Ideology in which the state and/or race is assumed to be supreme over individuals.
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Communism
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System of government in which a single totalitarian party controls all means of production and distribution of goods and services.
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Socialism
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System of government involving collective or government ownership of economic enterprise, with the goal
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Documents that helped guide the Founders in the creation of the Confederation
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The Articles of Confederation
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Articles of Confederation
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The Magna Carta, The Mayflower Compact, and the Colonial Charters
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Problems with the Articles of Confederation
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Political arrangements under the Articles were unsatisfactory to many influential groups- notably, bankers and investors who held U.S. government bonds, plantation owners, real estate developers, shippers, and merchants
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U.S. Constitution different than the Articles of Confederation |
The Articles of Confederation did not benefit plantation owners, farmers, shareholders, bankers and investors, but the U.S. constitution does benefit them |
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Charles Beard Thesis
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Constitutional conventions were men of wealth: planters, slaveholders, merchants, manufacturers, shippers, bankers, investors, and land speculators. Most of them owned Revolutionary War bonds that were how worthless and would remain so unless the revenues are passed off.
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Main Issues debated during the Constitutional Convention |
levying taxes, regulating commerce, protecting money, protecting national security |
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How were the Connecticut compromise and the 3/5th clause decided?
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By letting slaves count as 3/5ths of a vote
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How 'Democratic' was the government the Founders created?
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They believed that governments rests ultimately on "the consent of the governed," but their notion of republicanism envisioned decision making by representatives of the people, not the people themselves.
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Proponents of the New Constitution
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(1) Government is more responsive (2) Voter Increases (Higher turnout), Unclear and (3) Increase individual political efficacy
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Opponents of the New Constitution |
(1) Government becomes mob rule, minorities suffer, courts? (2) Government lacks stability as laws quickly change (3) People may be too stupid, or emotional? (4) And special interests groups dominate even more, depends |
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Best Arguments against the New Constitution
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There are other issues such as strengthening the government, leaves many powers to state, and allows citizens to elect leaders
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Checks and Balances (National Level)
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constitutional provisions giving each branch of national govt. certain checks over the actions of other branches
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Separation of Powers (National Level)
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Splits the Government into entities, so no one gets too much power.
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Judicial Review
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Power of the U.S. Supreme court and federal judiciary to declare laws if congress and the states and actions of the president unconstitutional and therefor legally invalid.
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Equal Rights Amendment (ERA)
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Proposed amendment to the constitution guaranteeing that equal rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged on account of sex. Passed by congress in 1972 the amendment failed to win ratification by three- fourths of the states.
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Enlightenment Period
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Also known as the age of reason, a philosophical movement in eighteenth-century Western thought based on a belief in reason and the capacities of individuals, a faith in scientific approach to knowledge, and a confidence of human experience.
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Main types of systems used to divide power between the national government and other governments
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Federal, Unitary, and Confederation
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Type of System initially used in the United States |
Federal |
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Did the Founders favor Federal system over the confederacy they lived under? |
They preferred a Federal System because it solved problems for wealthy people, bankers, and manufacturers |
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Advantages of a Federal System
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(1) It checks power to prevent tyranny (2) Proximity may lead to greater understanding for individual needs (3) State and National governments are base for party losing national office (4) Encourages policy innovation: Laboratories for Democracy (Social Security, Minimum wage) (5) More efficient-federal govt. does not pick up trash
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Disadvantages of a Federal System
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(1) State leaders may serve local interests rather than national good (2) States can obstruct national actions (3) Differing state agendas and the complexity of the national/state system may lead to social injustices
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How has the American system changed over time? |
National Power has increased and states gained more power to level out the power |
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Specific vehicles were used to instigate this change? |
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Used to resist this change and maintain or return power to the states? |
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Necessary and Proper Clause
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Clause in Article I, Section 8, of the U.S. Constitution granting Congress the power to enact all laws that are "Necessary and Proper" for carrying out those responsibilities specifically delegated to it. Also referred to as the Implied Powers Clause.
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