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Political Science > Midterm 1 > Flashcards

Midterm 1 Flashcards

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1
Q

What are the 6 forms of government

A

Tyranny, monarchy, oligarchy, aristocracy, democracy, polity

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2
Q

What is tyranny

A

Ruled by one person, for their own interest

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3
Q

What is monarchy

A

Ruled by one person, for the people’s interests

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4
Q

What is oligarchy

A

Ruled by the few, for the fews own interest

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5
Q

What is aristocracy

A

Ruled by the few, for the people’s interest

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6
Q

Democracy

A

Ruled by the many, for the interest of the people

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7
Q

Polity

A

Ruled by the many, for the interest of the many

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8
Q

Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679)

A

Themes: fear, war, peace
Materialism
Felicity
Worst condition for humans is to be without a recognized state authority

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9
Q

Materialism

A

Bodies will move in constant motion, even the brain “reasoning is but reckoning”

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10
Q

Felicity

A

Continual happiness in achieving changing needs

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11
Q

Human beings seek…

A

Felicity and power

Predominantly self regarding, Status conscious, death average, equally vulnerable to one another

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12
Q

Hobbes says like without the state would be:

A

Solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short

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13
Q

Why is the natural right of liberty

A

The freedom to do whatever we take to be necessary in order to preserve ourselves

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14
Q

What are Hobbes “laws of nature”

A

Fundamental law: seek peace if you can get it

  1. Lay down your natural right if others do too
  2. Perform your convenants
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15
Q

The laws of nature bind us to…

A

Our internal forum (our minds)

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16
Q

If we suspect that others don’t follow the laws…

A

We will not follow them and make ourselves vulnerable

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17
Q

The state is needed to…

A

Provide incentives for people to follow the laws

Anyone who lays down their natural right is a “sucker”

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18
Q

John Locke (1632-1704)

A

Natural abundance of land
State of nature behinds as a state of peace
The state can protect us from a state of war

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19
Q

Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778)

A
  • humans desire self preservation
  • natural savages differ from corrupted human beings
  • scarcity creates a problem; self preservation trumps pity
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20
Q

Rousseau says the solitary natural man only desires…

A

Food, sex, sleep

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21
Q

Rousseau says the natural man has free will to generate a range of developments (such as …) that develop…

A
  • tool-making -> language -> agriculture

- social emotions, eventually creates private property, inequality and war

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22
Q

If we are naturally free and equal

A

state authority is not legitimate unless citizens of the state consent to it

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23
Q

What are the 3 ways to justify political obligations

A

Associative duties
Transactions
Natural duties

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24
Q

Associative duties

A

Special requirements attached to the unchosen role or status of citizen

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25
Q

Transactions

A

ex. Receiving benefits from the state or making a promise to obey

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26
Q

Natural duties

A

General moral requirement to promote happiness or justice

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27
Q

Social contract tradition

A

The belief that there should be an actual, voluntary contract to express consent to the state
(This contract does not exist)

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28
Q

Express consent

A

Many individuals have never actually consented to the state

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29
Q

Tacit consent

A

Implicit or understood

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30
Q

Hypothetical consent

A

In the stage of natural, rational individuals would consent to create a state; therefore the state is legitimate

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31
Q

Locke’s argument: two options available regarding laws

A
  1. A publicly agreed, shared set of laws

2. Defer to private judgements about the content of laws

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32
Q

Utilitarianism

A

The right action is the one that maximizes utility, happiness, or wellbeing (3 parts)

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33
Q

What are the 3 parts to utilitarianism?

A

Theory of good (utility, happiness)
Commitment to equal concern
Requirement of maximization (produce as much good as possible)

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34
Q

Direct utilitarianism

A

Each individual decision should be made to maximize happiness

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35
Q

Indirect utilitarianism

A

Laws should be made to maximize total happiness, analyze what makes a law morally right

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36
Q

Criticisms of utilitarianism

A

Too demanding for humans to follow

Too permissive

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37
Q

Fairness in utilitarianism

A

Those who receive benefits must pay their fair share of the burden by providing those benefits

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38
Q

Nozick’s question:

A

If others force benefits on me, am I obliged to reciprocate?

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39
Q

Democracy

A

Rule by the people
Gives each citizen an equal day at some stage of the process
The collective is ruling itself

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40
Q

What are the 4 dimensions of democracy

A

Directness of decisions
Accountability of representatives
Equality of opportunity for influence
Scope of authority of democratic will

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41
Q

Directness of decisions

A

indirect forms of political decision making where voters choose representatives who make particular policy choices

42
Q

Accountability of representatives

A

Extreme: representatives can be immediately recalled

Extreme lack of: representatives are elected for life

43
Q

What is ‘retrospective recall’

A

Voters get an opportunity to vote for a new representative every so often

44
Q

Equality of opportunity for influence

A

Affected by economic inequalities

Economic sphere are effects on political sphere

45
Q

Scope of authority of democratic will

A

Issues open to democratic decision vs. left for individuals to decide for themselves

46
Q

What are the two ways to limit the scope of democracy?

A

By appealing to the democratic ideal

By assigning the issue to the private sphere

47
Q

When and where did democracy originate

A

6th century Greece, disappeared for centuries then was reborn in a different guise

48
Q

Plato’s objection to philosophy

A

Democracy is rule by people who are unskilled in ruling; bad form of rule
Believed philosophers should rule
Benevolent dictatorship

49
Q

Intrinsic reasons for pro democracy

A
  1. Self rule (enables individuals to rule themselves)
  2. Self realization
  3. Commitment to equality of persons
50
Q

Instrumental reasons - consequences of democracy

A
  1. Produces better decisions
  2. Produces better citizens
  3. Perceived as legitimate
51
Q

John Stuart Mill

A

Author of On Liberty

52
Q

Liberty/harm principle

A

You may justifiably limit a persons freedom of action only if they threaten harm to another

53
Q

Stages of development of liberty

A

Contest between subjects and government
Development of democratic government
19th century recognition that democratic majorities themselves be tyrannical
Threat of social tyranny

54
Q

Sarah Conley

A

coercive paternalism

We are not the best judges of what we want

55
Q

Optimism bias

A

Irrational optimism

We tend not to take appropriate steps to benefit ourselves

56
Q

Status quo bias

A

Valuing what we already have more than alternatives

We resist new laws that would improve our lives

57
Q

Harm vs offence

A

People have a right of protection from harm, not from being offended

58
Q

Why is liberty valuable

A

Liberty is comparable to enjoyment, both are intrinsically valuable

59
Q

Mill on Liberty

A

ONLY harm to others and offences against decency limit liberty

60
Q

Marx on money

A

Can transform human relationships

Universal whore and pimp

61
Q

Justifying property rights - Utility

A

Goods to be distributed in way that’ll maximize happiness and well being

62
Q

JPR - Natural rights

A

Right to private property
Free market capitalism with minimal state
Forced redistribution is illegitimate

63
Q

JPR - Freedom

A

Rawls liberal egalitarianism combines freedom and equality
Redistribution
Unrestricted free market

64
Q

“income parade”

A

Done in the 70’s - Jan Pen

Conveyed shocking reality of income inequality

65
Q

Income inequality

A

Richest 5% = 1/3 of global income
Poorest 80% = 1/3 of global income
1.4 billion people live on less than $1.425 a day

66
Q

Wealth inequality in Canada

A

46 billionaires = bottom 14 million

67
Q

Global wealth inequality

A

The worlds richest 1% have more wealth than the other 99%

Richest 62 have as much wealth as the poorest half of the worlds population

68
Q

Rousseau on private property

A

Fruits of earth belong to us all

Earth itself belongs to no iffy

69
Q

Nozick on private property - 3 different principles

A

Justice in initial acquisition
Justice in transfer
Rectification of injustice

70
Q

John Locke on right to private property

A
  1. Survival
  2. Labour mixing
  3. Value added
  4. Desert
71
Q

Survival

A

Mankind is to be preserved as much as possible
Leave enough and and as good for others
Doesn’t justify property rights

72
Q

Labour mixing

A

Individuals own themselves and their labour
Unfair to those unable to work
Mixing does not equal ownership

73
Q

Value added

A

Labour adds value to nature

Doesn’t justify claiming the property

74
Q

Desert

A

Those who work productively deserve to enjoy the fruits of their labour
Unfair to those who can’t work

75
Q

Upshot of Locke’s argument

A

Difficult to justify an account of initial acquisition of property
Focus on market system

76
Q

The Market

A

Who owns what?
Why do people produce?
How are goods distributed?
Want determined which goods get produced?

77
Q

Pure capitalist free market

A

Private property rights
Goods produced for profit
Goods distributed by voluntary trade
Free competition

78
Q

Planned economy

A

State owns all major property
Production for needs not profits
Distribution by central allocation
State controls what gets produced

79
Q

Modified free market

A

Some state owned enterprises
Some voluntary distribution
Sale of some goods is prohibited
Some state enforced monopolies

80
Q

Arguments against the market is

A

Wasteful, alienating, explosive, generates unjust inequalities

81
Q

Improving the free market

A

Internalize the externalities
State can make it illegal to produce some goods with negative externalities
State provides public goods and taxes citizens to pay for them

82
Q

Rawls on distributive justice

A

Veil of ignorance
‘People in the original position’ (POPs)
These people only know they want primary goods (liberties, opportunities, wealth, income)

83
Q

What would POPs choose?

A

Rational choice theory
Utility maximization: maximizing average utility
POPs would follow maximin theory

84
Q

Maximaxers

A

Take high risk

Achieving greatest possible outcome even when it is irrational and unlikely

85
Q

Maximin

A

Maximize the minimum

Worst possible outcome is as good as can be

86
Q

Liberty principle

A

Each person is to have an equal right to the most extensive total system

87
Q

Why does Rawls reject utility

A

It fails to recognize the distinction between persons

88
Q

Politics

A

Social process or activities where individuals/groups with conflicting interests or views reach binding decisions about what to do

89
Q

5 part line

A

Social -> process -> conflict -> binding decisions -> enforced

90
Q

The state

A

Territorial, sovereign community

91
Q

Authority

A

Legitimate power

92
Q

Power

A

Ability to produce results
Coercion
Hard power
Soft power

93
Q

Hard power

A

The stick - force and coercion, military, police

The carrot - economic inducement, bribes, sanctions

94
Q

Soft power

A

Attraction, getting others to want what you want

95
Q

State of nature

A

A “thought experiment” in which we imagine our world without the stage

96
Q

Anarchism

A

State coercion is unjustified

Cooperation vendors ecerhone

97
Q

Principle of fairness

A

Those who receive benefits must pay their fair share of the burden of providing those benefits

98
Q

Intrinsic reason

A

Reasons democracy is good in itself

99
Q

Autonomy

A

Self rule

100
Q

Instrumental reason

A

Value democracy has on society

101
Q

Market model

A

Candidates market themselves to citizens

102
Q

Forum model

A

Debate and discussion shapes citizens desires

Political Science (1 decks)

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