Politics and Government

Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis Copyright 2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.

Power
The ability to achieve desired ends despite resistance from others

GovernmentA formal organization that directs the political life of a society

Governments demand compliance from the population.
Weber: Most governments dont openly threaten their people.

Every government tries to make itself seem legitimate.

Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis Copyright 2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.

Authority
Power that people perceive as legitimate rather than coercive.

TraditionalPower legitimized through respect for long established cultural patterns Rational-legalPower legitimized by legally enacted rules and regulations

Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis Copyright 2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.

Authority
Power that people perceive as legitimate rather than coercive.

CharismaticPower legitimized through extraordinary personal abilities that inspire devotion and obedience
Routinization of charismaThe transformation of charismatic authority into some combination of traditional and bureaucratic authority

Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis Copyright 2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.

Monarchy
A political system in which a single family rules from generation to generation

Absolute monarchy
Rulers claiming power based on divine right Modern examples: Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain

Constitutional monarchy
Symbolic heads of state Political principles rule Elected official actually rules Modern examples: Great Britain, Spain, Denmark

Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis Copyright 2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.

Democracy
A political system that gives power to the people as a whole
Representative democracyAuthority in hands of elected leaders, accountable to the people The US isnt truly democratic . Extensive use of unelected bureaucratic officials Wealthy have more political clout than impoverished. Political economy The interplay of politics and economics Capitalist societies claim freedom while socialist societies claim security.

Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis Copyright 2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.

Other Political Systems

AuthoritarianismA political system that denies popular participation in government
Authoritarian government is indifferent to peoples needs. Examples: Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Ethiopia

TotalitarianismA highly centralized political system that extensively regulates peoples lives
Seeks to bend people to the will of the government Vietnam, North Korea

Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis Copyright 2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.

The Rise of the Welfare State

Individualism Welfare stateGovernment agencies and programs that provide benefits to the population One in six US workers is a government employee. The US welfare state is still smaller than those of many other high-income nations.
Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis Copyright 2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.

The Political Spectrum

Ranges from extremely liberal on the left to extremely conservative on the right Economic issues Social issues Class, race, and gender Party identification

Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis Copyright 2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.

Special-Interest Groups
People organized to address some economic or social issue

Special-interest groups
Strong in nations where political parties tend to be weak Employ lobbyists to work on their behalf

Political action committee (PAC)An organization formed by a special-interest group, independent of political parties, to raise and spend money in support of political goals

Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis Copyright 2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.

Voter Apathy
Americans are less likely to vote today than a century ago.
Only half of all registered voters participated in the 2000 presidential election. Participation rose to 60% in 2004. Women slightly more likely than men to vote Over 65 much more likely to vote than college-age Non-Hispanic whites more likely to vote than African Americans Hispanics least likely to vote People with a bigger stake in US society are more likely to vote

Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis Copyright 2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.

Voter Apathy
Conservatives: Apathy is political indifference. Liberals: Apathy is alienation.

Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis Copyright 2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.

Theoretical Analysis of Power in Society

Pluralist modelAn analysis of politics that sees power as spread among many competing interest groups
Power-elite modelAn analysis of politics that sees power as concentrated among the rich Marxist political-economy modelAn analysis that explains politics in terms of the operation of a societys economic system

Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis Copyright 2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.

The overthrow of one political system in order to establish another Political revolutions have common traits: Rising expectations Tend to happen when quality of life is improving Unresponsive government Government unwilling or unable to reform Radical leadership by intellectuals Thomas Hobbes: Intellectuals provide the justification for revolution. Establishing new legitimacy Guarding against the counterrevolution

Political Revolution

Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis Copyright 2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.

Terrorism
Acts of violence or the threat of violence used as a political strategy by an individual or a group

Characteristics:
1. 2. 3. 4. Define violence as a legitimate political tactic; bypasses established channels of negotiation Used by governments as well as individuals Democratic countries are especially vulnerable to terrorism because of broad civil liberties. One persons terrorist is another's freedom fighter.

Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis Copyright 2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.

War and Peace

Wrights five factors that promote war: Perceived threats Threats to people and territory Social problems Internal problems and frustration Political objectives Show of force and protecting ones own property Moral objectives Rallying people around morality Absence of alternatives Limited options
Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis Copyright 2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.

War and Peace

Social class and the military
"America's military seems to resemble the makeup of a two-year commuter or trade school outside Birmingham or Biloxi far more than that of a ghetto or barrio or four-year university in Boston."

Is terrorism a new kind of war?

Conventional warfare is symmetrical. Terrorism is asymmetrical.

Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis Copyright 2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.

War and Peace

The costs and causes of militarism Military-industrial complexThe close association of the federal government, the military, and the defense industry Regional conflict as a reason for continuing militarism Nuclear weapons Nuclear proliferationThe acquisition of nuclear weapons technology by more and more nations
Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis Copyright 2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.

War and Peace

Mass media and war The power of the mass media to provide selective information to a worldwide audience means that television and other media are almost as important to the outcome of a conflict as the military that are doing the actual fighting.

Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis Copyright 2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.

Pursuing Peace
Deterrence
Balance of power between societies

High-technology defense
Strategic defense initiative

Diplomacy and disarmament

Keep talking about reducing arms

Resolving underlying conflict

Increase spending on promoting peace rather than building up military

Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis Copyright 2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.