Government and Politics Flashcards
John Locke beliefs
Wrote “Two Treaties of Government”
People need government to maintain social order because they have not yet figured out how to live in groups with no conflict. (Govt. makes laws)
Thomas Hobbes
Social Contract Theory: in a natural state no government exists, by contract people surrendered to the state, the power needed to maintain order.
Capitalism
Emphasizes the freedom of choice and individual incentive for workers, investors, consumers, and business enterprises
5 Main characteristics of capitalism
Private ownership and control of property and economic resources
Free enterprise
Competition among businesses
Freedom of choice
Possibility of Profits
Socialism
Government owns the basic means of production, decides how to use resources, distributes the products and wages, and provides social services such as education, health care, and welfare.
Three main goals of socialism
Distribution of wealth and economic opportunity equally among people
Society’s control, through its government, of all major decisions about production
Public ownership of most land, of factories, and other means of production
Communism
Emphasizes no social classes, all property held is in common, and government is not necessary
Karl Marx
Believed that in industrialized nations the population is divided into capitalists and workers who work to produce the goods
Federalism
Power is divided between the national and state government.
Both levels have their own agencies and officials that pass laws that direct affect citizens
Popular sovereignty
Rule by the people
Judicial Review
Courts have the power to declare laws and actions of local, state or national governments invalid if they violate the Constitution
Interest groups
A group of people who share common goals and organize to influence government
