Political Science 100

"Politics is social activity involved when a group of people has discussion over what the group should be doing and how it should achieve its goals"

• Competing interests and values inside any given groups

• "who gets what, when and how"

• scarcity of resources

• conflicts and competition => main characters of politics

• cooperation and consensus building, sharing resources

• Power is unevenly distributed

• Power corrupts

• Power conflicts and abused

• Democracy and cooperation

• Power as a productive thing

• Power allow changing the world and people's lives for the better => a mean to achieve goals

• Questions norms and values

• "What ought to be" as opposed to what "is"

• Concerned with ethical questions

• Influence of values in political values/motivations

• How a person votes => looking at their personal beliefs => things that can't be turned into data. What kind of model and standards shapes politics in society?

• To identify the effects of certain norms or values on politics

• Recognize bias in research

• determine what is desirable and good in politics

• Focuses on the meaning of the concept used when talking about or representing politics.

• Where these concepts came from Ex. when talking about indigenous topics can we use the term 'sovereignty'

• Focuses on language, writing, representations, symbols used to describe political events/situations

• holds that science must limit itself to what is observable and insists on a clear separation between fact and value.

-positivism holds that normative claims are meaningless: The only meaningful statements are those that can be either investigated empirically, by observation, or examined semantically.

• Focuses on identifying observable phenomena, closest to scientific methods. Break down a phenomenon that is measurable, analyse data that are measurable => and collect data that is measurable (certain knowledge)

• Opposed to thinking "its ought to be that way"

• Be objective as possible

• Achieve certainty

• Develop in the USA after 1945

• Aim to apply scientific method to study of social phenomena like politics

• Aspires to perfect objectivity

• Measures and predict human behaviour

• BUT Critics say knowledge produced is debatable

• Rational choice theories of politics

• Rational choice analysis developed in economics

• Starts with fundamental assumptions about human behaviour

• Deduced before tested against facts

• Assumes humans are rational beings

• Behaviouralism

• Start with empirical observations

• Draw explanatory generalisations from them

• Focuses more on gathering data than generation of theory

• Politics comes from greek word "polis"

• Notion of polis is heart of what we concern with political science

• Translated as city/ city-state

• Polis form of political entity, form of political community, unified moral body => Notion of the Common Good

• Ancient Greek, a well-ordered city-state was necessary to achieve the COMMON GOOD. - This is what members of the community shared, officials (documents) to all of them as a community, collective notions

• For Plato, the COMMON GOOD is to Politics what TRUTH is to philosophy -> the highest goals

• The COMMON GOOD is also applied to the best interest of community

• Each polis has own governance

• Difference law making powers

• Responsible for laws of polis

• Making sure community well governed, ordered

• Each was autonomous

• Culturally, politically different

rational activity conscious way

• Deliberation, public speech, and dialogues are means to achieve the Common Good

• Plato believes that the polis should be governed by philosophers (people who know that TRUTH).

• They don't want to be in charge, they don't want power. - Their whole life is orientated to seek the TRUTH. They know what the COMMON GOOD commands. THE COMMON GOOD ⇔ THE TRUTH

• Utilitarian → end justifies means

• Self interested

• Extremist

• 1513 and published in 1532

• 1469

• To convince the government to let him back into a position of power.

• Trying to flatter the Prince, he is smart, has something to offer, he is also benevolent and wanted to offer practical. (A mirror to the Prince)

• In the language of his time, he was addressing the top of the city-states (prince = highest power)

• Often considered the first Modern political theorist

• Western political thought, "modern" = not referring to time/time period -> Referring to the political context that revolves around the state

• the interest of the states as an institution.

• Insist radical separation of politics, religions, and question of ethics

• Politics is art, activity, has its own rationality

• Conceptualise power w/o reference to morality/religion

• Maintain the Security of the State

• Prince could rule without consideration of God

• Practical view of power

• Politics is practical activity

• How can the Prince gain and maintain power

• The end justifies the means -> Maintain power and security-> act unethically

• Prince have to "act in defiance of good faith, charity, kindness, religion"

• Prince must be willing, able to do above

• For Machiavelli, the end always justifies the means

• Prince should be willing to make unpopular decisions for the state

• The prince power doesn't come from God or from rare knowledge of Truth

• Power comes from ability to enact virtue, act in interest of City-state

• Ultimately prince can only count on himself and his virtu

• Virtue deals with morality

• Virtu is political effectiveness

• Politics is a matter of practical skills, vision, talent, attitude, and dedication.

• Virtue implies strength, flexibility, and wisdom (in which have talent, right attitude and dedication)

• if he achieves honour, glory, and fame

• "One ought to be both feared and loved, but as it is diff for two go tgtg, musch safer to be feared than loved"

• Anti democratic

• The goddess of chance, control the world's destiny. Unpredictable

• Changes of fortune will inevitably happen

• Power -> requires flexibility -> adapt to changing circumstances.

• Be impetuous, never retreats and not overly prudent

• Fortuna os "the arbiter of half the things we do"... "the other half or so [is] to be controlled by ourselves

• An impetuous prince os more likely to have his way, than one who is overly cautious

• Ultimately, prince needs courage, to adapt, to change, to face difficulties

What is legal isn't always moral, what is moral isn't always legal

• Arbitrary and tyranny (censorship and power)

• He doesn't follow due process

• His law is made/ applied inconsistently

• The application of his law depends on the use of physical force

• It does not align with the majority's notion of justice

• Unpredictable and unreason, no reasons on how these powers work

• Creon operate on the basis of fear, physical forces and coercion

• Unpredictable and with no logic behind it

• Justice is normative notion

• Largely an idea, an ideal

• Law is a mechanism, political means to achieve justice

• Yet, the law is NOT NECESSARY ALWAYS JUST

• Opposition and protest are important aspects of politics

• Speaks truth to Power

• Politics often exists in the margins of law

• Law isn't necessary equivalent to politics Politics doesn't always come from a place of power

• "speaks truth to power"

• "opposing law when it is unjust"

• Parrhesia: "To speak freely with an obligation to be truthful and for the sake of the common good. Even at the cost of facing consequences"

• Method of collective decision making

• People affected by decision should be making decision

• Premised on equality of all members of grp

• Everyone has equal say

• Power rests with people

• Democracy is matter of political equality

• a government in which people vote to make their own rules and laws

• people who are affected by the decision, they are directly involved in the decision making

• a government in which citizens choose a smaller group to govern on their behalf

• elect people that represent our will and interests in a governmental institution

• "equality of all groups" =/ does not say equality among who

• 1 person= 1 vote =/ equality

• minority whose will and interests are not represented to the same extent as others.

• the quality of someone or an institution that has a rightful claim to exercising authority or power.

• Democracy is often cited as the main reason why citizens have an obligation to obey the law

• In democracy, laws are made by elected representatives and are said to express the will of the power

• Competition: between different options

• Accountability: people choosing their government/ remove them

• Equality (one adult citizen = one vote)

• People must have the possibility of changing their government if they want (Lively, 1975)- according to the will that people voted and the interest of the population

• The basic elements of representative democracy

• Separation of power: government =/ courts of law => they don't intertwine with each other => ACCOUNTABILITY

• Freedom of thought and speech

• Freedom from harm

• Freedom of association and petition

• Free market economy (laissez-faire) = fundamental element of liberalism. VIEW as basic human rights

• The rule of law is a liberal democratic principle

• Everyone is equal before the law

• No one is above the law

• Laws are made based on due process

• Laws have to make consistent with the constitution

• Constrain the government to a certain extend

• The processes involved in making and applying the law must be transparent and public

• The courts are the guardian of the rule of law

• tyranny of the majority

• Democracy implies being ruled according to the will of the majority

• Government has to rule in everyone's interests

• The minority (minorities) isn't getting the same level of representation

• The minority can also be discriminated against as a result of democratic decisions

• More than 2 government => minorities are disregarded

• Freedom from external constraint Ex. american bill of rights (first ten amendments)

• In what area should a person be left to be free to do what they want without government interference?

• Freedom to attain desired outcome and self-development Ex. liberal welfare state (free education, health care, childcare)

• What form of support/ intervention from the government is required to allow a person to positively enjoy their freedom?

• Elitism is a perspective according to which state institutions are and should be controlled by political leaders

• Ordinary citizens are happy to leave politics to the elites.

• Democracy is seen as a mechanism where people protect themselves from the intervention of the government

• See participation as a burden that individuals accept only to endure that politicians are accountable

• Negative freedom

• Argues it's possible to reconcile elitism and democracy

• Different elites rep difference interest/values (compete for the privilege of representing people)

• Citizen choose preferred elites, but not policies

• Claimed masses are irrational

• Citizens can be easily manipulated

• Political judgement weak

• Citizen participation is said to deepen democracy by installing civic values and making more informed citizens

• Deepens democracy

• Citizens who participate = more virtuous, intelligent

• Understand need for cooperation

• Self worth increases

• based on the work of Jurgen Habermas

• Choices must be developed through deliberation, debate, and reflection

• Public debate increases the rationality and legitimacy of the decisions that are being made

• Important for citizens to have places where there can be face-to-face deliberations (Discussion, municipal, consultation.

• Not enough for voters to have opportunity to exercise political choice

• True democracy must allow choices to be develop through discussion/reflection.

• too difficult to reach consensus, exaggerating the facility in which we can reach consensus in a deliberative model (everyone has different backgrounds/believes)

• Established organization that present "regular patterns of behaviour that give stability and predictability to social life (Garner et al. 154)

• Institutions can be informal (families social classes)

• Some are formal (states, governments, political parties....)

• the state is an institution claiming a "monopoly of the legitimate use of physical force in enforcing its order within a given territorial area".

• Idea of sovereignty is specific to state

• Monopoly, we know it speaks to the state

• State only allowed to use legitimate power

• The state has sovereignty, for example, "supreme authority to make and enforce law inside a given territory".

• In theory sovereignty is above challenge

• In practice, sovereignty is often challenged inside and outside the state

State can do what is necessary to make sure law is represented => order

• Referring to government of country, executive government

• OR structure of political authority

• Structure of Political Authority -> State has permanence → continues to exist even when the government removed from power (court, police)

• Democracy: make sure there is no abuse in power

• States: can only use force that is considered legitimate

• Legal right to rule supremely

• Legal status of state

• What gives state right to be recognized by UN

• A flag that is recognized by other state

-Actual ability of government to wield political power & authority

• Ability to maintain order

• External challenges → globalisation

• The things connect states diminishes states ability to make decisions by itself

• Sheer physical force, sheer power

• No consent

• Illegitimate authority

• Middle ground

• Managed to make group do something

• Legitimate authority

• Consent is freely given

• Acceptance that power is legal and right

• Traditional: based on traditional customs and values

• Charismatic: based on the personality and the quality of a person (Make judgements on basis of charisma)

• Legal - rational: based on the status of a person's office and or the legality of the process by which they obtained this position of authority (judges are nominated, not elected.

1, how much they intervene in society (pp22)

• Night watchman state

• Welfare state

• Socialist state 2, how democratic they are (p24)

• Liberal democracies

• Illiberal democracies

• Authoritarian regimes

• Totalitarian regimes 3, How strong or weak they are (p 167 b- 172)

• one of the most important theorists of classical pluralism

• A normal feature of any society is the presence of multiple groups, each with their own interests and pursuing their own objectives.

• Groups compete to exercise political and economic influence inside society.

• The role of the state is to regulate and mediate between these groups.

• Power is diffuse or fragmented between different political actors.

• Political influence takes different forms

• Power is more complex than who has who doesn't

• No group can claim exclusive influence on society, not even government

• Even on given topic there is always competition between diff grps holding dif interests and vision (This is what politics is according to pluralists)

• The movement aimed at implementing neoliberal ideas (support NEGATIVE FREEDOM)

• An ideology based in liberal, claimed to be the new version

• Mode of governance, exercising power inside the state

• Based on the protection of individual rights, liberty

• Tied to Social Contract Theory

• Think liberal welfare state overstepped its original purpose

• As an institution, the state has grown out of proportion both in terms of its size and powers

• Rollback services

• State reduces in size

• Reduce money taxpayers (redistribution of health add burden on taxpayers)

• Bring back to the value of negative freedom and individual freedom

• the state exists as an institution, the origin of the state is found on the contract.

• Citizens make the law with the protection of individual liberty

• Trade-off individual liberty for protection and individual rights.

• Democracy: election results in politicians over-promising new things

• State bureaucracy: bureaucracy of any state has a tendency to view its own growth as a good thing => want to take on more responsibility

• Tax cut

• Roll back welfare services

• Free trade

• Privatisation of state industries and corporations

• Large arena within which institutions compete or cooperate for influence

• Example:

• In the electoral system, parties compete to be elected and form the government

• In the European modern state system states compete and or cooperate for greater influence and the defence for their interests

• Sovereign states have a fundamental right to self-determination (autonomy)

• Legal equality between states

• Nonintervention

• Sovereign states have fundamental right to self-determination

• Right to political autonomy

• Recognized sovereign states have rights to pursue own affairs as they see fit and the exercise power inside their boundaries as they see fit

• Established sovereignty of sovereign states

• No states, other institution, clergies, have right to interfere within state

• Influence stops at the border

• Asserts states borders

• Recognise sovereignty and independence

• Formalise idea: states are institutions claiming exclusive power, have supreme authority over a territory

• Managing relations with other states

• Protecting their sovereignty population and territory from external threats

• Partisan

• Guardian

• Tool

• States pursue own institutional interests

• Continuity of independence and authority

• Continue their existence

• Sort of going after idea: raison d'etat

• States work in interest of their population, focus on unity

• States need to balance various interest → pluralism

• Respond to population's expectations as to what they should be doing

• Human security, services to the population, the justice system, democracy and freedom to participate in politics

• states can be used as a "pliable instruments" used by one or more groups in society to achieve their own interests -> use states as a leverage to achieve their own goals

• Colonialism is a practice of dominations, which involves the political, economic, and cultural subjugation of one people to another

• Practice of domination involving ongoing, permanent settlement of a colonising settle population

• Implies land appropriation and displacement of Indigenous population

• When state relied on permanent bureaucracy to enact actions

• Primary purpose: Exploitation of human/natural resources

• Secondary motivation: More ideological

• Spread of so-called civilisation

• Viewed as european's responsibility

• Saw themselves as centre of universal progress

• The spread of European political and bureaucratic structures world - wide was seen as contributing to humanity's progress

• When former colonies gained or took their independence, they tended to make sure of the structure already in place

• Ways in which one country exercise power over another country

• Can be done direct/indirectly

• Larger category than colonialism

• Not always implies colonialism

• BUT colonialism always implies imperialism

• Colonialism always done direct, imperialism can be indirect

• 1870s, European focus to gain power bc of resources

• 1884, European leaders met in berlin

• Scramble for africa. Discuss how to divide continent, conquer Africa

• In 20 years, entire continent divided by european power

• Complete disregard pre-existing population and political views

• Borders drawn w disregard to ppls traditional governance

• Nothing natural about states we live in -> historically shaped by relations of power -> evaluation and critiques are needed

• State is not necessarily the most important in politics -> just the dominant institutions

• State form is presented throughout the world -> colonialism - > State not necessarily a universal form of governance

• Set of ideas designed to describe existing political order

• a vision of what the ideal political order should look like

• A set of belief for the world and how it should run, exercising.

• The means to act politically to go from what exists to what we want

• Pathway for actions, programs

• evolve over time and have different stands or schools of thoughts within them

• Not mutually exclusive -> Overlap