Chapter One: Freedom, Order or Equality
Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.1 | 2 The Globalization of American Government Globalization is the increasing interdependence of citizens and nations across the world. Every government must consider the international ramifications of a country’s military, economic and social policies. Government is the legitimate use of force – including firearms, imprisonment, and execution – within specified boundaries to control human behavior; the organization of agency authorized to exercise that force.
Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.1 | 3 The Globalization of American Government Diplomacy has been based upon the principle of national sovereignty, a political entity’s externally recognized right to exercise final authority over its affairs; each government’s right to govern its people as it wishes, without interference from other nations. Increasing globalization has brought a human rights emphasis to international politics, possibly at the expense of national sovereignty
Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.1 | 4 Purposes of Government Government exists to control; citizens must surrender some freedom to be governed :The three major purposes of governments are: –Maintaining Order (establishing the rule of law to preserve life and property) –Providing Public Goods –Promoting Equality
Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.1 | 5 A Conceptual Framework for Analyzing Government What government tries to do can be simplified into three concepts: order, freedom and equality. How government chooses the proper mix of freedom, order, and equality can be evaluated using two models of democratic government: the majoritarian and pluralist models.
Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.1 | 6 The Concepts of Freedom, Order, and Equality Freedom is used in two major senses: : –Freedom of: the absence of constraints on behavior - freedom to do something (liberty) : –Freedom from: immunity from fear and want; the fight against exploitation and oppression.
Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.1 | 7 The Concepts of Freedom, Order, and Equality Order is also used in two ways: –The narrow sense refers to preserving life and protecting property –Social Order (the broader sense) refers to the established patterns of authority in society and to traditional modes of behavior
Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.1 | 8 The Concepts of Freedom, Order, and Equality Equality is used in two different senses, to support different causes: : –Equality of opportunity: Each person has the same chance to succeed in life –Equality of outcome: The redistribution of wealth and status so that economic and social equality are actually achieved
Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.1 | 9 Two Dilemmas of Government The original dilemma of government involves freedom versus order The modern dilemma of government involves freedom versus equality
Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.1 | 10 Ideology and the Scope of Government People hold different opinions about the merits of government policies Ideology is defined as a consistent set of values and beliefs about the proper purpose and scope of government
Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.1 | 11 Ideology and the Scope of Government
Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.1 | 12 Ideology and the Scope of Government Ideologies exist on a continuum –Totalitarianism is the belief that government should have unlimited power and control all sectors of society and individual behavior, such as in business, labor, education, sports and the arts. –Socialism is a theory of government that believes the scope of government extends to ownership or control of the basic industries that produce goods and services. Socialism allows for more private ownership of productive capacity than Communism. –Capitalism is an ideology that supports free enterprise and private business operating without government regulation. –Libertarianism is an ideology that opposes all government action except what is necessary to protect life and property. –Anarchism is an ideology that opposes all government, in any form and values freedom above all else.
Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.1 | 13 American Political Ideologies and the Purpose of Government American liberals are willing to use government to promote equality, but are less likely to use government to maintain order American conservatives are willing to use government to promote order but not equality
Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.1 | 14 A Comparison of Liberals vs. Conservatives reveal that: Liberals: –Want generous government support of social programs –Support government activism but oppose government regulation of abortion –Are more tolerant of alternative lifestyles and would use coercive power to support equality Conservatives: –Want smaller government budgets and fewer government programs –Oppose government activism but support the traditional pattern of social relations –Want government coercive power to maintain social order
Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.1 | 15 Other American Political Ideologies Libertarians value freedom more than order or equality. They favor minimal government intervention in both the economic and social spheres. Communitarians believe government should be used to promote moral values and to help the disadvantaged. They favor government that promotes both order and equality
Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.1 | 16 Ideologies: A Two-Dimensional Framework