Theories and Origins of Government

I. Theories of Government Evolution Theory A population formed out of primitive families. The heads of these families became the government. When these families settled in one territory and claimed it as their own, they became a sovereign state. Force Theory An individual or group claimed control over a territory and forced the population to submit. In this way, the state became sovereign, and those in control formed a government.

Theories of Government Divine Right Theory God created the state, making it sovereign. The government is made up of those chosen by God to rule a certain territory. The population must obey their ruler. Social Contract Theory A population in a given territory gave up as much power to a government as needed to promote the well-being of all. In doing so, they created a sovereign state.

II. Contributions of the Greeks Athenian Democracy or Direct Democracy When: 508 BCE – 322 BCE What: Also called pure democracy Occurs when the will of the people translates directly into public policy Works only on a small, local level Where:

III. Contributions of the Romans Roman Republic When: 509 BCE – 27 BCE What: Classical Republicanism Civic virtue Moral education Small, uniform communities

So, what kind of government do we have in the U.S. today?

English Origins of American Government The Magna Carta (1215) King John is forced to sign by barons Included guarantees of such fundamental rights as trial by jury and due process of law Protection against absolute power

English Origins of American Government The Petition of Right (1628) King Charles I signed, by force of the Parliament Limited king’s power May not impose martial law Can not force quartering Punish only be laws of the land Questioned Divine Right No man should be “compelled to make or yield any gift, loan, benevolence, tax, or such like charge, without common consent by act of parliament.”

English Government – Parliament Arrives Parliament was a council of nobility created to advise the monarch. History of hostility between parliament and monarch. Parliament = House of Lords + House of Commons House of Lords- nobility House of Commons - wealthy and people of standing in community-knights, merchants, craftsmen.

English Origins of American Government The English Bill of Rights (1689) Signed by William and Mary of Orange during the Glorious Revolution Prohibited a standing army in peace time Required free parliamentary elections

John Locke, 1632-1704

John Locke’s Natural Rights Philosophy State of Nature Natural Rights Human Nature Purpose of Government Social Contract Theory

Pure Democracy and Crowdsourcing What is crowdsourcing? Definition Examples

Pure Democracy and Crowdsourcing Pros of Delegating Decision-making: Efficient Expert quality Pros of Pure Democracy: Equality Representational quality

Who should decide? The Math: Condorcet's jury theorem One of the two outcomes of the vote is correct, and each voter has an independent probability p of voting for the correct decision. The theorem asks how many voters we should include in the group. The result depends on whether p is greater than or less than 1/2: If p is greater than 1/2 (each voter is more likely than not to vote correctly), then adding more voters increases the probability that the majority decision is correct. In the limit, the probability that the majority votes correctly approaches 1 as the number of voters increases. On the other hand, if p is less than 1/2 (each voter is more likely than not to vote incorrectly), then adding more voters makes things worse: the optimal jury consists of a single voter.

Testing the theory Divide in half making 2 teams for chess One team will vote on a representative to make all their decisions The other will vote each day on their move. If the “pure democracy” team wins, voters were more likely than not to make the correct decision and more voters creates better results.

Questions to Consider Should we all vote on more decisions? Which branch of government would most appropriately be replaced by this system? What are the problems with a pure democracy in America?