POLI 1- Ch. 1.1

Q: What other public goods does government provide in the United States?

A: At the federal, state, and local level, government provides stability and security, not only in the form of a military but also in the form of police and fire departments. Government provides other valuable goods & services such as public education, public transportation, mail service, & food, housing, & health care for the poor. If a house catches on fire, the fire department does not demand payment before they put the fire out. If someone breaks into a house and tries to harm the occupants, the police will try to protect them and arrest the intruder, but the police department will not request payment for services rendered. The provision of these goods and services is funded by citizens paying into the general tax base.

Q: Who was Adam Smith?

A: a Scottish philosopher, who believed that all people should be free to acquire property in any way that they wished. Instead of being controlled by government, business, & industry. He argued that instead of being controlled by government, business, & industry, people should be allowed to operate as they wish and keep the proceeds of their work. (capitalism) Fun Fact: his book, "The Wealth of Nations" was published the same year the Declaration of Independence was written (1776)

Q: Who was John Locke?

A: an English political philosopher of the seventeenth century, all people have natural rights to life, liberty, & property. From this came the idea that people should be free to consent to being governed. In the eighteenth century, in Great Britain's North American colonies, & later in France, this developed into the idea that people should govern themselves through elected representatives & not a king; only those representatives chosen by the people had the right to make laws to govern them

Q: Why are governmental systems confused with economic systems?

A: certain types of political thought or governmental organization are closely related to or develop with certain types of economic systems Ex: The economic system of capitalism in Western Europe & North America developed at roughly the same time as ideas about democratic republics, self-government, & natural rights. At this time, the idea of liberty became an important concept.

Q: What are the goals of governments around the world?

A: economic prosperity, secure national borders, & the safety/well-being of citizens

Q: Provided by governments for citizens, what the most common benefits?

A: education, health care, & an infrastructure for transportation

Non-Excludable Goods

All people have access to these goods. No one may be excluded. Anyone may use the good or service, usually w/o charge.

Section Summary

Government provides stability to society, as well as many crucial services such as free public education, police and fire services, & mail delivery. It also regulates access to common goods, such as public land, for the benefit of all. Government creates a structure whereby people can make their needs and opinions known to public officials. This is one of the key factors that makes the United States a representative democracy. A country where people elect representatives to make political decisions for them depends on the ability & willingness of ordinary people to make their voices known, unlike an oligarchy dominated by only a small group of people.

Non-Rivalrous Goods

Many people can use the same good or service at the same time.

Excludable Goods

Not everyone has access to these goods. Some will be excluded from having them, often because only those who pay for the good or service may use it.

Rivalrous Goods

Only one person can use the good or service at any given time.

Totalitarianism

a form of government where government is all-powerful and citizens have no rights Ex: North Korea

Monarchy

a form of government where one ruler, usually a hereditary one, holds political power

Direct Democracy

a form of government where people participate directly in making government decisions instead of choosing representatives to do this for them Ex: In ancient Athens, the most famous example of a direct democracy, all male citizens were allowed to attend meetings of the Assembly. Here they debated & voted for or against all proposed laws. Although neither the federal government nor any of the state governments function as a direct democracy—the Constitution requires the national and state governments to be representative forms of government—some elements of direct democracy do exist in the United States. While residents of the different states vote for people to represent them and to make laws in their behalf in the state legislatures and in Congress, people may still directly vote on certain issues. For example, a referendum or proposed law might be placed on the ballot for citizens to vote on directly during state or local elections instead of leaving the matter in the hands of the state legislature. At New England town meetings, all residents are allowed to debate decisions affecting the town. Such occasions provide additional opportunities for civic engagement.

Representative Democracy

a form of government where voters elect representatives to make decisions & pass laws on behalf of all the people instead of allowing people to vote directly on laws

Majority Rule

a fundamental principle of democracy; the majority should have the power to make decisions binding upon the whole

Democracy

a political system in which people govern themselves, with capitalism. In theory, a democratic government promotes individualism and the freedom to act as one chooses instead of being controlled, for good or bad, by government. Capitalism, in turn, relies on individualism. At the same time, successful capitalists prefer political systems over which they can exert at least some influence in order to maintain their liberty. Ex: One might argue that a capitalist economic system might be bad for democracy in some respects. Although Smith theorized that capitalism would lead to prosperity for all, this has not necessarily been the case. Great gaps in wealth between the owners of major businesses, industries, and financial institutions and those who work for others in exchange for wages exist in many capitalist nations. In turn, great wealth may give a very small minority great influence over the government—a greater influence than that held by the majority of the population.

Socialism

an alternative economic system. In socialist societies, the means of generating wealth, such as factories, large farms, & banks, are owned by the government and not by private individuals. The government accumulates wealth and then redistributes it to citizens, primarily in the form of social programs that provide such things as free or inexpensive health care, education, & childcare. In socialist countries, the government also usually owns and controls utilities such as electricity, transportation systems like airlines & railroads, and telecommunications systems. In many socialist countries the government is an oligarchy.

Examples of Toll Goods:

cable TV, private school education, turnpikes

Examples of Private Goods:

cell phones, cars, & homes

Other than providing stability & goods & services, what else do governments do?

create a structure by which goods & services can be made available to the people. Most governments also provide a means for citizens to participate in government and to make their opinions known to those in power. Ex: Western democracies like the United States, Britain, France, and others protect citizens' freedom of speech and the press. These nations, and others in the world, also allow citizens to vote.

Government

describes the means by which a society organizes itself & allocates authority in order to accomplish collective goals & provide benefits that the society as a whole needs

Examples of Common Goods:

fish in the ocean, fresh water

Public Goods

goods provided by government that anyone can use and that are available to all without charge

Private Goods

goods provided by private businesses that can be used only by those who pay for them Ex: In the United States, the democratic government works closely together with its capitalist economic system. The interconnectedness of the two affects the way in which goods and services are distributed. The market provides many goods and services needed by Americans. For example, food, clothing, & housing are provided in ample supply by private businesses that earn a profit in return. People can purchase what they need in the quantity in which they need it. This, of course, is the ideal. In reality, those who live in poverty cannot always afford to buy ample food and clothing to meet their needs, or the food and clothing that they can afford to buy in abundance is of inferior quality. Also, it is often difficult to find adequate housing; housing in the most desirable neighborhoods—those that have low crime rates and good schools—is often too expensive for poor or working-class (& sometimes middle-class) people to buy or rent. Thus, the market cannot provide everything (in enough quantity or at low enough costs) in order to meet everyone's needs. Therefore, some goods are provided by the government.

Common Goods

goods that all people may use but that are of limited supply Ex: Since everyone can use these goods, they must be protected so a few people do not take everything that is available and leave others with nothing.

Toll Goods

goods that are available to many people but is used only by those who can pay the price to do so. They occupy a middle ground between public and private goods. Ex: All parents may send their children to public schools in the United States. They can choose to send their children to a private school, but the private school will charge them. On the other hand, public schools, which are operated by the government, provide free education so all children can attend school. Therefore, everyone in the nation benefits from the educated voters and workers produced by the public school system. Another distinction between public and private goods is that public goods are available to all, typically without additional charge.

Political Power

influence over a government's institutions, leadership, or policies

Oligarchy

only members of a certain political party or ruling elite can participate in government Ex: In China, the government is run by members of the Chinese Communist Party. However, socialist countries can have democratic forms of government as well, such as Sweden. Although many Americans associate socialism with tyranny and a loss of individual liberties, this does not have to be the case, as we see in Sweden.

Civil Engagement

participation that connects citizens to government; a vital ingredient of politics Ex: In the United States, citizens play an important role in influencing what policies are pursued, what values the government chooses to support, what initiatives are granted funding, & who gets to make the final decisions. Political engagement can take many forms: reading about politics, listening to news reports, discussing politics, attending (or watching televised) political debates, donating money to political campaigns, handing out flyers promoting a candidate, voting, joining protest marches, & writing letters to their elected representatives.

Minority Rights

protections for those who are not part of the majority Ex: Let's say American society decided that atheists, people who do not believe that God exists, were evil and should be imprisoned or expelled from the country. Even though atheists only account for about 7 percent of the population, they would be protected due to minority rights. Even though the number of Americans who believe in God far outweighs the number who do not, the minority is still protected. Because decisions are made through majority rule, making your opinions known and voting for those men & women who make decisions that affect all of us are critical & influential forms of civic engagement in a representative democracy such as the United States.

Examples of Public Goods:

public education, mail service, national security

Politics

refers to the process of gaining & exercising control within a government for the purpose of setting & achieving particular goals, especially those related to the division of resources within a nation