POL 111 Chapter 1: Politics: Who gets What, and How?
Document Summary
Politics: a process determining how power and resources are distributed in a society without recourse to violence. Power: the ability to get other people to do what you want: wealth, status, political background, education/knowledge. Resources: government jobs, tax revenues, laws, public policies, etc. Social order: the way we organize and live our collective lives: politics is the process to get to social order. Government: a system or organization for exercising authority over a body of people. Authority: power that is recognized as legitimate ( right ) Rules: directives that specify how resources will be distributed or what procedures govern collective activity: rules are the how of who gets what, when and how . Institutions: organizations in which governmental power is exercised: rules provide for the institutions of a representative democracy, and our constitution lays the foundation for the institutions of our government. Both politics and economics focus on the distribution of society"s resource.
