Topic 1 Test

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 basis of what concepts?

government by consent

What is Indirect democracy?

a system of government that gives citizens the opportunity to vote for representatives who work on their behalf

What is Direct Democracy?

A form of government in which citizens rule directly and not through representatives

Compare the disadvantages of the presidential and parliamentary systems. Which disadvantage do you think is the most detrimental to the democratic function of government? Explain your reasoning.

Although the parliamentary system of government avoids prolonged conflict and deadlock between the executive and legislative branches, I believe the need to check a government‟s power is more important in a democratic government. A nation that is not protected against arbitrary actions of government is a nation that can lose freedoms that are important in a democratic society.

What did Winston Churchill mean when he stated: "it has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except all those other forms that have been tried from time to time"?

Churchill meant that although democracy is not perfect, it is better than any other form of government that has been tried over the centuries.

In what way is the United States a representative democracy?

Citizens choose small groups of people to make laws and policy for them.

What is enforcing antitrust laws?

Criminal and civil enforcement actions brought by the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice. Civil enforcement actions brought by the Federal Trade Commission. Lawsuits brought by private parties asserting damage claims.

Use the following quotation to answer the question. "The right to swing my fist ends where the other man's nose begins." —Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Explains the point that Justice Holmes was making about democracy.

Everyone has rights, but the exercise of these rights cannot endanger others.

Use the following quote to answer the question. "The first requisite of a good citizen in our republic is that he should be able and willing to pull his weight."—President Theodore Roosevelt, 1902 Summarizes Roosevelt‟s statement?

Good citizens should be willing and able to accept the duties and responsibilities of living in a free society.

How did mercantilism and colonialism make monarchies stronger?

Mercantilist policies allowed monarchs to tax trade, which increased their wealth. These policies also motivated monarchs to establish colonies around the globe that increased trade even more and thus brought them even more wealth. Greater wealth and extended empires increased the political and economic strength of monarchs.

Arrange the various levels of feudal society in order, from those with the most power to those with the least. Feudal Society in the Middle Ages Merchants, Farmers, and Craftsmen B. Peasants Pope and Church, Nobles, Knights and Vassals, Monarch

Pope and Church; Monarch; Nobles; Knights and Vassals; Merchants, Farmers, and Craftsmen; Peasants (serfs)

What is creating pure food and drug laws?

The Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906 prohibited the sale of misbranded or adulterated food and drugs in interstate commerce and laid a foundation for the nation's first consumer protection agency, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

In what way was Athenian democracy a direct democracy?

The central feature was an Assembly open to all male citizens at least 18 years of age.

What four historical theories of the origins of the state best accounts for feudalism? Why? Use details to support your answer.

The force theory best accounts for feudalism. Feudalism arose in a time of chaos and disorder. The closest thing there was to central authority was the most powerful lord, who used force to control territory. People submitted to his authority and traded freedom for security.

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.

Use the following excerpt to answer the question. "The [Roman] Republic was far from democratic in the modern sense. It did introduce the concept of representation, however." Write a statement to support this idea?

The government of the Roman Republic was centered in the Senate, and Senators were elected by citizens.

Use the following excerpt to answer the question. "To help manage the national government, monarchs hired loyal civil servants typically born in the towns and educated at local universities. Their perspectives were national, not regional. The state, in the person of the monarch, now had sovereignty or the utmost authority in decision making and in maintaining order. Everyone, including the nobles, was subordinate to that authority. . . .With sovereignty, the monarch now had the right to make laws for the entire nation and all its people." How did the establishment of nations expand the power and reach of government?

The laws and policies of national governments affected greater numbers of people.

What is providing fire and police protection?

To provide residents and the business community with a high level of fire protection, the city maintains its own municipal Fire Department.

Autocracy

a government controlled by a single person

Oligarchy

a government in which a small group exercises control

Dictatorship

a government in which rulers are not responsible to the will of the people

Theocracy

a government ruled by religious leaders and based on religious law

What is enforcing building codes?

a process whereby local governments use various techniques to gain compliance with duly-adopted regulations such as land use and zoning ordinances, health and housing codes, sign standards, and uniform building and fire codes.

A legitimate government is

one that is accepted by its people and other governments as the sovereign authority of a nation.