The Basics of Government
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Transcript of The Basics of Government
The Basics of GovernmentGovernment - Libertyville HS
Four Characteristics of a State
• Population
• Territory
• Sovereignty
• Government
What is a Government?
• Definition: “institution through which a society makes and enforces public policies”
• Public policy = all things a government decides to do
Composition of Government• ALL governments have these parts
• Legislature• Makes the laws
• Executive• Enforces the laws
• Judiciary• Interprets the laws
Purposes of Government
• Brainstorm with a partner a list of the purposes off government
• Some of Mr. Duffy’s purposes of gov’t• Maintain a national defense• Interact with other national governments• Preserve order
• Set rules of society• Punish rule breakers• Provide means of dispute resolution (judiciary)
• Provide appropriate public services• Collect taxes• Socialize youth
Forms of Government
• One or few hold power = dictatorship• Types of dictatorships
• Absolute Monarchy• Oligarchy
Forms of Government• Many participants
= democracy
• Types of democracy• Direct Democracy
(“Pure”)• Indirect
Democracy (“Representative”)
Flow of Power
Forms of Government
• Idea of “levels of government” (between central / national gov’t and state / local gov’t)• Unitary system• Confederate
system• Federal system
Key question: What isThe “direction of power”;in other words, who tells the other political units what to do???
Presidential vs. Parliamentary Governments
What is American Democracy?
• Review - what is a democracy?• Government by the people
• People vote on issues, either directly / indirectly• Usually, majority rules
• What is American democracy?• Majority rule & protection of minority rights• Equality of opportunity (vs. equality of outcome)• Freedom of speech (= obligation to listen?) and
other individual rights• Limited or unlimited individual rights?• Capitalist economic system (vs. Socialism)
American Democracy: Capitalism• Free enterprise
• Based on Law of Supply and Demand
• Individuals, not government, makes day to day economic decisions
• Profit motive drives system• Mixed (blended) economy
• Government regulation of most important sectors of economy• Goal = protect individuals
from market forces• How? Government laws,
regulations, and litigation
Mixed Economy
HOW MUCH REGULATION OF THE ECONOMY IS APPROPRIATE IS ONE OF THE
KEY DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE TWO AMERICAN POLITICAL PARTIES!!!