Gov&Econ Chapter 1 Study Guide
What is an example of a government regulation that might restrict private enterprise?
antitrust laws
A government ruled by a dictator is a form of
autocracy
What could be considered the most important characteristic in defining a good citizen?
being patriotic
According to John Locke, political society is created when individuals voluntarily form a government to create and enforce laws, thereby protecting the people who form that government. In this social contract, people give up some of their power to the government, which then rules in their interest. This is the basic of which of the following concepts?
government by consent
What is considered a civic responsibility of an American citizen?
voting in the presidential election
A newspaper headline that reads "President Rejects Tax Increase Bill" is an example of what?
The President has power to block actions of the legislature
Choose the answer that best completes the chart
A government controlled by a single person
What best illustrates the difficulty of striking a balance between an individual's rights and the rights of society as a whole?
A man exercises his freedom of speech by wearing a T-shirt that is offensive to some conservative persons
Legitimacy is important to a government because it is...
A way to affirm belief in the government's right to rule and provide stability
What best describes a unitary government?
All powers held by the government belong to a central agency
How does democracy protect minority rights?
By insisting that the majority listen to the arguments and ideas of the minority
In what way is the United States a representative democracy?
Citizens choose small groups of people to make laws and policy for them
Why is compromise important in a democracy?
Compromise is needed to blend and adjust competing views to find the position most acceptable to the majority
What describes the legitimacy of a monarch who is believed to have been granted power by God?
Divine right
Mercantilism had a greater impact on which aspect of states?
Economy
"The right to swing my fist ends where the other man's nose begins" makes what point about the foundations of democracy?
Everyone has rights, but the exercise of these rights cannot endanger others
What is the best definition of the public policies of a government?
Everything a government does related to public services
What term describes a system in which powerful lords protected others in exchange for lands and labor?
Feudalism
"The first requisite of a good citizen in our republic is that he should be able and willing to pull his weight" can be best summarized...
Good citizens should be willing and able to accept the duties and responsibilities of living in a free society
What summarizes the idea of "if men were angels, no government would be necessary"?
Government is necessary, because people do not always behave
What does it mean that "injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere"?
If even one person is affected by injustice, everyone is affected
What is the different between an autocracy and an oligarchy?
In an autocracy, a single person holds all the power; in an oligarchy, a small group of people hold the power.
"To many people, the most meaningful of these classifications is the one that depends on the number of persons who can take part in the governing process". Why might this particular classification be most meaningful to people?
In indicates how democratic a government is
What effect did the Black Plague have on the structure of government in the Middle Ages?
It lead to the decline of feudalism and the growth of central governments controlled by monarchies
What are the three basic powers a government should have?
Legislative, executive, and judicial
To benefit from colonialism, monarchs adopted mercantilism. What best explains this theory?
Mercantilism allowed monarchs to increase their own wealth and power
What is considered an advantage of a federal system of government?
Power is divided between a central government and many local governments
The Athenian concept of government, echoed by the modern United States, is best described as...
Rule by the people
What is most likely to be associated with the ideas of Baron de Montesquieu
Separation of powers
What major historical political theory of the origin of the state is most compatible with the Declaration of Independence?
Social contract theory
In what way was Athenian democracy a direct democracy?
The Council of Five Hundred was 500 citizens chosen randomly for one-year terms
What statement describing feudalism reflects on people's basic need for government?
The feudal system arose because centralized authority had collapsed, resulting in chaos and disorder.
What is the relationship between democracy and the free enterprise system?
The government does not decide what is produced or what items cost, but does play a role in the economy by protecting the public and preserving private enterprise
"The Roman Republic was dar from democratic in the modern sense. It did introduce the concept of representation, however", which statement best supports this idea?
The government of the Roman Republic was centered in the Senate, and Senators were elected by citizens
What is government?
The institution through which a society makes and enforces its public policies
How to presidential and parliamentary forms of government differ from one another?
The presidential form has executive and legislative branches that are separate but equal, whereas the parliamentary form has an executive branch that is a part of the legislative branch
What would happen to a state that had population, territory, and government, but
The state would not have the power to make its own foreign policies
What is the most likely reason the phrase "the laws of nature and nature's God" was included in the Declaration of Independence?
The writers of the Declaration of Independence used the phrase to express their beliefs in John Locke's theory of natural rights
What statement best expresses the concerns of the founders of the American government?
Their focus was to create a government that protected all aspects of the nation and its people
A disadvantage of a confederate government is that...
They tend to be weak since they have only the powers granted to them by member states
What answer most likely explains why some dictatorships adopt features of democratic governments?
To appease their people and other nations
What is the purpose of the separation of powers in a presidential form of government?
To ensure that no branch has more power over another
Paying taxes in a democracy is considered
a duty
What statement supports the argument that the structure of a government is important?
governments are a product of human need
What is the best example of judicial powers?
interpreting laws that are controversial among citizens
What is an advantage of a written constitution?
it defines the powers of the government
What is the basic power of every government that allows it to interpret laws?
judicial power
A legitimate government is...
one that is accepted by its people and other governments as the sovereign authority of a nation.
What is an example of an activity that might be carried out privately that are in fact conducted by the government?
providing fire and police protection
Enlightenment thinker William Blackstone believed strongly in "common law", the concept that legal decisions...
should be based upon similar, previous decision
What are the common characteristics of every state?
territory, population, government, sovereignty
What is a significant factor in the rise of mercantilism?
the Black Plague
What accurately describes the divine rights of kings theory?
the power of government derives from divinity
What accurately describes the social contract theory?
the power of government is derived from the people
In Washington's opinion, what would be required of the People?
voting
