Shandyn & Mitchell 2B

Any system must have two properties: 1.A set of interdependent parts, and 2.Boundaries towards the outside environment. All systems, such as ecosystems and automobiles, have interdependent parts, and political systems are no different. Usually they are a set of institutions, such as parliaments, bureaucracies, and courts that formulate and implement the collective goals of a society. POLITICAL SYSTEMS

Political systems feature governments at their core, while encompassing important parts of the environment in which governments operate. Political systems have a lot to do with legitimacy, which is how we tell whether the “rulers” have the right to command a government. POLITICAL SYSTEMS(CONT.)

A state is a political system that has sovereignty over a population in a particular territory based on the recognized right to self-determination. We mostly distinguish between internal and external sovereignty. Internal – the right without external intervention to determine matters having to do with oneself. External – the right to conclude binding agreements, or treaties, with other states. STATES

We often think of the world as a patchwork quilt of states with sizable terrtiories and a common national identity. These are called nation-states. (In which national identification and the scope of legal authority coincide) Even though this may seem like the most natural way to organize states, it was not always so. Until about 500 years ago Europe was comprised of many small states and few large ones. Rarely were the stable, and few people knew anything about the political system the state ran on. The 19 th century was the main era that the concentration of power in the nation-states occurred. STATES(CONT.)

States give people a sense of community and a common cause. Most nation-states share a common language, religion, and a common educational system. The big challenge that states come with is the weakness of national identity. Africa is one great example of this, because of the colonization and the fairly recent independence from France and Britain, the country has been left with huge nation-building tasks. STATES(CONT.)

After World War II, power began shifting downward to local governments, and upward to supranational organizations. The European Union (EU) and the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) are examples of the later development. STATES(CONT.)

The UN was formed at the end of World War II, and is the most important organization that encompasses almost all of the world’s states. In 2002 the UN reached a membership of 191 states. The UN acts as a peacekeeper in countries stricken by civil war and lawlessness. It has acquired increased authority over world security, constraining, supporting, and replacing the unilateral actions of individual states. While the sovereignty of stats may be thus slipping away, they are still the most important political systems around. THE UNITED NATIONS

Just about the entire surface of the world today is covered by close to 200 independent states, and there are some secessionary movements that, if successful, would make our figures obsolete. When the US declared it’s independence in 1776, most independent states were European. But in the early twentieth century, the number of states increased, prnicipally in Latin America. OLD AND NEW STATES

From the 1950’s on, its has become customary to divide the states of the world into three categories: first, second, and third world. First: advanced capitalism democracies Second: communist bloc of countries, that at that time, led the Soviet Union Third: the remaining states of the world that are neither rich, nor communist. With the collapse of the communist countries, and the increasing differences between developing societies, these categories are no longer as useful as they once were. FIRST, SECOND, AND THIRD WORLD

Nation – a group of people with a common identity. The common identity may be language, religion, ethnicity, culture, or simply upon the territory in which they reside. The relationship between nations and states is not always so neat. Many times states are multinational, which causes a problem any time the nations disagree on an issue. States often cause Nations to break into different parts because of political differences. NATIONS

Ethnic groups – people with common physics traits, languages, cultures, or history. Ethnicity is important to a government because, throughout history, it has been the source of many political conflicts around the world. Suppression of religion is usually the biggest disagreement, but it also one of the biggest motivations for political involvement. (abortion, abolition of slavery, freedom of religion, and even world peace) NATIONALITY AND ETHNICITY

Language can be a large source of social division the is not directly associated with ethnicity. There are approx. 5,000 languages in the world today, and as you can imagine, that sparks a great barrier between states and nations. Linguistic conflicts usually shop up in controversies over educational policies or over language use in the government. SOCIAL DIVISION

States vary in their religious characteristics. In some such as Israel, the Irish Republic, and Pakistan, a common faith can be the basis of national identity for the population. In other societies such as Poland under communism, religious authorities can serve as rallying points for opponents or authoritarian regimes. RELIGIOUS BELIEFS AND FUNDAMENTALISM