Unit 1- Foundations of Government and Citizenship Flashcards
Define Government
The institution through which a society makes and enforces its public policies. Government is made up of those people who exercise its powers, all those who have authority and control over people.
Define Public Policies
All of those things a government decides to do.
Define Power
Power is the ability to command or prevent action, the ability to achieve a desired end.
What are the three kinds of power a government possesses?
Legislative-Executive-Judicial LEJ
Define Legislative Power
The power to make laws and to frame public policies.
Define Executive Power
The power to execute, enforce, and administer laws. EEA
Define Judicial Power
The power to interpret laws, to determine their meaning, and to settle disputes that arise within the society. IMD
Define Constitution
The body of fundamental laws setting out the principles, structures, and processes of a government. PSP
Define Dictatorship
A form of government where those who rule cannot be held responsible to the will of the people.
What are some characteristics that distinguish democracies from dictatorships?
State control of the media, a lack of political and personal freedoms, corruption of public officials, a lack of governmental transparency, and the lack of any mechanisms through which citizens can change the government.
Define Democracy
A form of government where supreme authority rests with the people.
When the emerging Roman republic was threatened by war with neighboring Sabine tribes, the Roman senate appointed _____ as a dictator to defeat the enemy.
Lartius
Who was Aristotle?
An important Greek philosopher.
What did Aristotle say?
Man is by nature a political animal.
Define Politics
The process by which a society decides how power and resources will be distributed within that society. PR
Define State
A body of people, living in a defined territory, organized politically (that is, with government), and with the power to make and enforce law without the consent of any higher authority.
What are the four characteristics of states?
Population, territory, sovereignty, and government. PTSG
What is the world’s most populous state and what is the world’s largest state?
China-Russia
Define Sovereign
Having supreme and absolute power within its own territory and being able to decide its foreign and domestic policies.
According to _____, the absence of government would lead to the war of every man against every man.
Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679)
What are the four theories that explain the origin of a state?
Force-Evolutionary-Divine Rights of Kings- Social Contract FEDS
Explain the Force Theory
When one person or a group of people claimed control over an area and forced all within it to submit to that person’s or group’s rule.
Explain the Evolutionary Theory
The claim that states developed naturally out of the early family.
Which philosophers contributed to the development of the Social contract theory?
Thomas Hobbes, James Harrington, John Locke, and Jean Jacques Rousseau HHLR
Explain the Social Contract Theory
By contract, people within a given area agreed to give up to the state as much power as was needed to promote the safety and well-being of all.
What does government do?
Form a more perfect union- Establish Justice- Insure Domestic Tranquility- Provide for the Common Defense- Promote the General Welfare- Secure the Blessings of Liberty.
What was the first constitution of the nation?
Articles of Confederation (which was between 13 states)
What are the three main ways to classify governments?
Who can participate in the governing process-the geographic distribution of governmental power within the state- Relationship between legislative and the executive branches of the government.
Who gave immortality to the definition of democracy?
Abraham Lincoln
What are the types of democracy?
Direct-Indirect DI
Define Direct Democracy
Exists where the will of the people is translated into public policy (law) by the people themselves, in mass meetings.
Define Indirect (Representative) Democracy
In a representative democracy, a small group of persons, chosen by the people to act as their representatives, express the popular will. This form of democracy is government with the consent of the governed.
Define Republic
In a republic, the sovereign power is held by those eligible to vote, while the political power is exercised by representatives chosen by and held responsible to those citizens.
What are the types of dictatorships?
Autocracy-Oligarchy AO
Define Autocracy
A government in which a single person holds unlimited political power.
Define Oligarchy
A government in which the power to rule is held by a small, usually self-appointed elite.
What are some examples of modern dictaroships?
Fascist Italy- Nazi Germany- Soviet Union IGS
Define Theocracy
A theocracy exists where the legal system of a state is based on religious law; an example is Iran.
What are the three basic forms of government?
Unitary-Federal-Confederate UFC
Define Unitary Government
A centralized government; all powers held by the government belong to a single, central agency. An example is Great Britain.
What are the disadvantages of a Unitary Government?
Abuse of Power- Not knowing the needs of citizens
What are the advantages of a Unitary Government?
Laws are applied uniformly and there is little conflict between levels of government.
Define Federal Government
A government in which the powers of government are divided between a central government and several local governments.
What are the disadvantages of a Federal Government?
Each of the 50 States can have its own policy on the same issue-Frequent conflicts between levels of government.
What are the advantages of a Federal Government?
National and State power are both limited and preserved under a federal system, that government is closer to the people, and that individualized solutions to issues can be implemented on a State-by-State basis, which also encourages innovation.
Define Confederation
An alliance of independent states. A central organization, the confederate government, has the power to handle only those matters that the member states have assigned to it.
What are the forms of government under the scope of their relationship between their legislative and executive agencies?
Parliamentary-Presidential PP
Define Presidential Government
A system of shared powers in which the executive and legislative branches have separate powers. The two branches are independent of one another and coequal.
Define Parliamentary Government
The executive branch is made up of the prime minister or premier, and that official’s cabinet. The prime minister and the cabinet are themselves members of the legislative branch, the parliament. The prime minister is the leader of the majority party or of a like-minded group of parties and is chosen by that body. With parliament’s approval, the prime minister selects the members of the cabinet from among members of parliament.
What major problem does the parliamentary form of government avoid that the presidential form of government has?
Prolonged conflict and sometimes deadlock between the executive and legislative branches.
What are the basic notions of democracy?
Worth of the Individual- Equality of All Persons- Majority Rule, Minority Rights- Necessity of Compromise- Insistence upon Individual Freedom WEMCF (Worth-Equality-Majority/Minority-Compromise-Freedom)
The democratic concept of equality means that every person is entitled to what things?
Equality of Opportunity- Equality Before the Law OL
How can democracy be described as?
An experiment or a trial-and-error process designed to find satisfactory ways to order human relations.
Define Compromise
The process of blending and adjusting competing views and interests.
What re the responsibilities, duties, and obligations of citizenship?
Being a “Good” Citizen- Making a Difference- Civil Society CDS
Define Citizen
One who holds both rights and responsibilities in a state.
Define Civil Society
The private area of American life outside of governmental institutions or interference.
Define Free Enterprise System
It is the economic system of America. It is an economic system characterized by the private ownership of capital goods; investments made by private decision, not by government directive; and success or failure determined by competition in the marketplace.
What is the Free Enterprise System based upon?
Private Ownership-Individual Initiative-Profit-Competition OIPC
What is the purpose of the government’s participation in the economy?
To protect the public and to preserve private enterprise.
At what levels is government involved in the economy and what are some examples?
National, State, and Local; economic activities are regulated by government through antitrust laws, pure food and drug laws, antipollution standards, and city and county zoning ordinances and building codes.
