Political Science 1020E Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Financial Regulation, Thomas Hobbes, Thought Experiment
Document Summary
Poli sci lecture 2: september 14th, 2017: state of nature: hobbes: state of nature, human nature, the road to war, the laws of nature. Failed/fragile state: no recognized authority with a monopoly on the use of legitimate force. It cannot ensure public order and security; it is in a condition of civil war. States near collapse or failure are referred to as a fragile state. The world as a three-level chess match: military, economic: trade, financial regulation (taxation, key transitional issues: climate change, infectious diseases. What is authority: a right to command, legitimate power, the right to punish those who disobey. The state of nature: why do we need a state, thought experiment act of the imagination, imagining different situations and what would happen when different factors were put into place. Imagine life without the state and political power. Hobbesian themes: fear, war (he lived through a time of civil war, peace.