PLS 201 Chapter Notes - Chapter 1-2: Electoral College, Bourgeoisie, Supremacy Clause
4 Jun 2018
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We The People
Reading Notes
Chapter 1
● What government does and why it matters?
○ Although most people complain about something that government does
for them, most everyone wants the government to do a great deal for
them.
○ Government (as a term)
■ The formal institutions through which a land and its people are
ruled.
■ Liberty - Personal freedom and government whose powers are
limited by law.
■ Equality - The idea that all individuals should have the right to
participate in political life and society on equivilant terms.
■ Democracy - Placing considerable political power in the hands of
ordinary people.
● Government Affects our lives every day,
○ What the government has done to build up after a break down.
■ 1993 the power of the government began to expand to meet the
crisis created byt he stock market of the 1929, the Great
Depression. Government passed legislation that brought the
government into personal spaces to relieve stress.
■ When the economy fell into a recession in 2008-09 the federal
government took action financially a bi action to inject hundreds of
billion of dollars into the economy.
○ Trust In Government Has Declined
■ Among the most supportive groups, more than half do not trust the
government.
■ By 2015 only 19% of Americans reported trusting the government
‘to do what’s right’.
■ Americans do trust their government, but long term distrust can
result in refusal on taxes.
○ Political Efficacy Means People Can Make A Difference
■ Political Efficacy
● The belief that ordinary citizens can affect what government
does.
● Feeling the loss of this for the American democracy is BAD
NEWS.
○ Declines in political participation and withdrawal from
political life.
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○ Citizenship Based on Political Knowledge and Participation
■ Citizenship
● Informed and active membership in a political community.
■ Citizens need political knowledge to figure out how best to act in
their own interests.
■ Knowlege is the first prerequisite for achieving an increased sense
of political efficacy.
○ “Digital Citizenship” Is the newest way to participate
■ The ability to participate in society online, and it’s increasingly
important in politics.
■ Benefits individuals, but also provides advantages to society as a
whole.
○ Government Is made up of the Institutions and procedures by which
people are ruled
■ To govern is to rule.
○ Different Forms of Government ARe Defined by Power and Freedom
■ Authoritarian System
● The government recoginizes no formal limit but may
nevertheless be restrained by the power of other social
institutions.
■ Totalitarian System
● Where the government recognizes no formal limits on its
power and seeks to absorb or eliminate other social
institution that might challenge it.
■ Democracy
● Political system that permits citizens to play a significant part
in the governmental process.
■ Constitutional Government
● Formal and effective limits are placed on the powers of the
government.
○ Limits on Government Encouraged Freedom
■ Bourgeoisie
● Freeman of the city and later became associated with being
‘middle class’ and w/ involvement in commerce or industry.
○ Expansion of Participation in America Changed the Political balance
● The patter of suffrafe expansion by groups hoping to derive
some political advantage has been typical in American
history.
○ The Goal of Politics is having a say in what happens
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Although most people complain about something that government does for them, most everyone wants the government to do a great deal for them. The formal institutions through which a land and its people are ruled. Liberty - personal freedom and government whose powers are limited by law. Equality - the idea that all individuals should have the right to participate in political life and society on equivilant terms. Democracy - placing considerable political power in the hands of ordinary people. What the government has done to build up after a break down. 1993 the power of the government began to expand to meet the crisis created byt he stock market of the 1929, the great. Government passed legislation that brought the government into personal spaces to relieve stress. When the economy fell into a recession in 2008-09 the federal government took action financially a bi action to inject hundreds of billion of dollars into the economy.
