1. Politics, Regimes and Democracy

2. Politics and Power
Politics can be treated as a process that regulates conflicts within a society. Political systems are often able to manage conflicts peacefully.

3. Categories of conflict
1. Conflicts over beliefs and general truths (“morals”)
2. Conflicts over the appropriate goals for the society
3. Conflicts over resources and their allocation
Can you think of examples of each?

4. Uses of Power Power can be given expression through
coercive or
persuasive means
Power is needed to enforce the terms of the conflict-ending agreement.
What if agreements could not be enforced?

5. Mutual Protection as the Root of Government
Hobbesian state of nature
To end: a single ruler must possess unquestioned authority to guarantee the safety of the weak from the strong.

6. The Roving Bandit Settles Down
What's the difference between a government and a bandit?
Longer-run approach to its victims.
Incentives: roving versus stationary bandit

7. Property Rights state is rooted in the protection of property rights
institutionalized standards of behavior
reduces uncertainty and thus transaction costs

8. Government
The institutions empowered with the legitimate use of force within a given territory to control human behavior.

9. Legitimacy
A status derived from a popular belief that governmental actions are an appropriate use of power by a legally constituted authority. Legitimacy reduces the costs of obtaining compliance.

10. Sources of Legitimacy Tradition/Habit Identity Results/Charisma
Rational-Legalistic or Bureaucratic Institutions

11. Regime Types Democratic Authoritarian Totalitarian Post-Totalitarian
Sultanic

12. Dimensions of Regimes Pluralism Mobilization Charismatic Leadership
Pervasive Ideology

13. Democracy
A system or regime type in which the ultimate political authority is vested with the citizenry

14. Types of Democracy
Presidential
Parliamentary
Semi-Presidential

15. Two basic requirements for a functional democracy
Participation
Contestation

16. Democracy vs. Republic
In a republic, sovereignty is vested with the people who elect agents to represent them.

17. Decision Making in Democracies
Direct Democracy
Representative Democracy
Representative as Delegate
Representative as Trustee

18. Limited Government
As a protection of minority rights against a “tyranny of the majority,” the United States has a constitutionally-limited government. Restrictions on government are written in a binding document (Constitution) and checks are placed on the individual organs of government.
American Constitutional Limits by:
Checks & balances
Federalism (states’ rights)
Civil liberties (individual rights)

19. Ideology
A comprehensive and logically ordered set of beliefs about the nature of people, institutions and the roles of government.

20. Three Basic Values 1. Order 2. Freedom (liberty) 3. Equality
Competing in a two-dimensional space.
Place yourself on the chart with IDEAlog:

22. “Liberalism”
Please note that the United States has an odd usage of the word “liberalism” – focused upon the advocacy of positive governmental action to improve public welfare – whereas in most of the world adherents champion freedom and limits on government.