Types+of+Governing+Structures_Theories


 * Lesson 1: June 21, 2011**


 * Assignment:** Below you will find a list of governmental structures/theories. Please add your thoughts and definitions to each of the words listed below. If something is not correct or needs further explanation, please make the appropriate changes.You don't need to add to a word if you already feel the definition is sufficient. (Put your name by the words you worked on.)



Any explanation of this great graphic that you would like to include?--Dr. E. =Anarchy (Leney (Loralene) Edvalson, Tricia Lund, Johanna Boone) = In is simplest definition anarchy means the absence of politically derived government, but contrary to popular understanding, anarchy does not always mean the absence of government, but rather the absence of conventional government. (Summarized from Wikipedia.) Anarchists claim that an anarchy leads to people coming together (harmony) and allows participants to freely exercise their own ideas. Kant said that anarchy is "Law and Freedom without violence". Basically, anarchists believe that democracy will form in the absence of conventional governmen **Aristocracy (Jeanne Prestwich, Carol Ann Litster, Aaron Andersen) ** Aristocracy is a form of government in which the ruling power is vested in a minority consisting of the best qualified citizens. The term was derived from the Greek word aristos, which means "best", at its heart aristocracy means "rule by the best." During the Middle Ages, this "best" class came to be defined as the "nobility" - a small group of families whose status is passed from generation to generation (hereditary aristocracy). With the ancient Greeks, the Aristocracy was the cool kids, the famous people, and it was the opposite of Direct Monarchy. The modern depiction of aristocracy is not rule by the best, but rule by the wealthy. (summarized by me, via Wikipedia).

**Autocracy** (Shannon Despain, Carol Ann Litster)
Comes from Greek, meaning self ruler or "one who rules by himself". Ruled by one person with absolute power. Associated with totalitarian and dictatorship. Autocracy has unlimited executive and legislative power, but totalitarianism is unlimited power in all aspects of public and private life. It is absolutely one person with all the power as opposed to a small group with all the power.It seems that autocracy is a more broad term which totalitarianism and dictatorships may fall under. Also, with autocracy, there are no restraints from the law or from mechanisms with popular control (the subjects). Yet the threat of insurrection could keep an autocracy cognizant of the needs of its people. All the activities of the state controlled by one person. http://www.auburn.edu/~johnspm/gloss/autocracy

Communism (Jeff Young, Ana Rodriguez, Carol Ann Litster)
System of social organization in which all economic and social activity is controlled by a totalitarian state dominated by a single & self-perpetuating political party. Communism as a movement is based upon the Marxist theory of a classless society. The word common or community is evident within the philosophy of communism, which aims for common ownership of production of and access to consumable materials. Through the establishment of common ownership of these materials Communism seeks to eliminate such social establishments as wage labor and real estate, resulting in a classless society. This modern idea of Communism was first presented through a pamphlet written by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engles in their document //The Communist Manifesto.// Karl Marx envisioned Communism evolving out of capitalism, as he viewed a progression of societies, beginning with agrarian. So, a flow chart: agrarian => capitalism => communism. Marx's goal: From each according to his ability, to each according to his need. He envisioned a stateless state where people take care of themselves. =Colonialism (Mary Buynak, Justine Blomdal, Jeannie Zwahlen, Katie Johnson) = The policy or practice of acquiring full or partial political control over another country, occupying it with settlers, and exploiting it economically. Colonialism is a practice of domination, which involves the subjugation of one people to another. The term colony comes from the Latin word //colonus//, meaning farmer. This root reminds us that the practice of colonialism usually involved the transfer of population to a new territory, where the new arrivals lived as permanent settlers while maintaining political allegiance to their country of origin. http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/colonialism/ "Colonialism is a relationship between an indigenous (or forcibly imported) majority and a minority of foreign invaders. The fundamental decisions affecting the lives of the colonised people are made and implemented by the colonial rulers in pursuit of interests that are often defined in a distant metropolis. Rejecting cultural compromises with the colonised population, the colonisers are convinced of their own superiority and their ordained mandate to rule." Jürgen Osterhammel

Constitutional Republic (Becky Mitchell, Amanda Henderson)
A state where the officials are elected as representatives of the people, and must govern according to existing constitutional law that limits the government's power over citizens. It is the presence of a written constitution that makes it constitutional and not just a republic; it also needs a system of checks and balances. America was founded as a constitutional republic and many would say still is a constitutional republic. The powers of the government are separated into branches (executive, judicial, and legislative). However, in recent years, many people have criticized America's federal government for moving away from being a constitutional republic and towards becoming a pure democracy. =Democracy (Shannon Despain, Tiffanie Miley, Justine Blomdal) = Government for and by the people. The people are the ruling body. They have a say in what is voted on and representatives are chosen by a lottery. It is a system striving to keep tyranny out and human power struggles in check. The citizens of a democracy take part in government either directly or indirectly. In a direct democracy, also called a pure democracy, the people meet in one place to make the laws for their community. Such democracy was practiced in the ancient Greek city-state of Athens. Most modern democracy is indirect democracy, which is also known as representative democracy. In large communities—cities, states, provinces, or countries—it is impossible for all the people to meet as a group. Instead, they elect a certain number of their fellow citizens to represent them in making decisions about laws and other matters. An assembly of representatives may be called a council, a legislature, a parliament, or a congress. There are several varieties of democracy: Representative Democracy, Consensus Democracy, and Deliberative Democracy. =Dictatorship (Michelle Warner, Amanda Henderson) = A government which is led by a single person, the dictator who is often associated with the military. Usually, the dictator does not have the consent of the people to lead, and often exploits the general public. It is often confused with a totalitarian government as the two often show themselves together. However, a dictatorship is about where the power comes from, while totalitarian is the scope of the governing power (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dictatorship). Dictatorship is the opposite of democracy: government without consent of the people vs people have the power. Some examples are Adolf Hitler (Germany), Benito Mussolini (Italy), Josef Stalin (Soviet Union), and Generalísimo Francisco Franco Bahamonde (Spain). Be aware, in all of the examples dictatorship and totalitarianism are seen.
 * **Representative Democracy** is a form of government founded on the principle of elected individuals representing the people.
 * **Consensus democracy** is the application of consensus decision-making to the process of legislation in a democracy. It is characterized by a decision-making structure which involves and takes into account as broad a range of opinions as possible, as opposed to systems where minority opinions can potentially be ignored by vote-winning majorities.
 * **Deliberative democracy** (also called discursive democracy) is a form of democracy in which public deliberation is central to legitimate lawmaking. It adopts elements of both representative democracy and direct democracy and differs from traditional democratic theory in that deliberation, not voting, is the primary source of a law's legitimacy. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democracy

Federalism (Katie Johnson, Tiffanie Miley, Jeannie Zwahlen)
Political power is divided between a central government and smaller governmental units (the federal government and states in the US). In a federal system, the division of powers is usually defined in a constitution. This allows the small units to be self governing in some issues. Citizens have political obligations to both the central government and the smaller governmental units. Alexander Hamilton suggested that both levels of government would exercise authority to the citizens' benefit: "If their [the peoples'] rights are invaded by either, they can make use of the other as the instrument of redress." **Feudalism (Mary Buynak, Carol Ann Litster) ** The dominant social system in medieval Europe, in which the nobility held lands from the Crown in exchange for military service, and vassals were in turn tenants of the nobles, while the peasants (villeins or serfs) were obliged to live on their lord's land and give him homage, labor, and a share of the produce, notionally in exchange for military protection. The government label "feudalism" was attached later (not considered a formal government system at the time), and focuses on the relationship or reciprocity of military and legal responsibilities between people. These responsibilities center on lord, vassals, and fiefs. Lord: title, feudal superior, given power from the king. Vassals: a person who has entered a contract with a lord, exchanging military protection for a land grant. Fiefs: estates of land, given by a lord to a vassal. (source: wikipedia with summarizing by me) =Marxist (Jeff Young, Brandon Jackson, Katie Johnson, Mary Quantz) = A Marxist is someone who is a follower of the Karl Marx and his theories of socio-econmic and socio-political methods and worldview called Marxism. Marxism holds that the material conditions of a society (i.e. capitalism) will eventually turn into a socialist society that renders a classless society to create equality where common ownership and free-access. These principles create free-thinkers and a society that will progress socially and economically beyond the limits of capitalism. Marxism is a political and economical philosophy that was developed by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engles. Marxism’s principle beliefs focus upon //dialectical materialism//, which suggests that the history of society is a product of class struggle. A specific class will rule as long as it represents the “economical forces of society”. When the specific class no longer is the best representative of that economical force it will be destroyed and replaced. Through this continuing process a classless society would eventually arise. An example is the replacement of the feudal nobility through the establishment of the industrial order, known as the bourgeois (capitalist). In the Marxist view, the bourgeoisie was the oppressor of the proletariat society. Once the bourgeoisie fulfilled their role in society than a final struggle would occur. This revolution would take place between the bourgeoisie, who had fulfilled their historic role and the proletariat (working class), which was composed of the industrial workers, which had become the true productive class. This revolution would result in a final classless society. Marx also pointed out that, in a capitalist society, the "working man" had to work harder than the higher classes for a much lower existence. By making goods, production and distribution of those goods, etc. public, the classes even out. **Monarchy (Michelle Warner, Ana Rodriguez, Britany Barnes) ** Supreme power or sovereignty held by a single person (a king or a queen) often determined by heredity. Sometimes the "office of head of state" is elected and called a "royal house," which changes the way one must define monarchy--it's not always hereditarily determined (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monarchy). Constitutional monarchies have modernized the monarch's role to one which is mostly ceremonial with very limited political power, if any. Currently, there are six absolute monarchies which include Brunei, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Swaziland, and Vatican City. **Oligarchy/Plutocracy (Ryan Nixon, Carol Ann Litster, Johanna Boone) ** Rule by the privileged few. Plutocracy, a specific form of oligarchy, is rule by the rich. Those few who rule an oligarchy in general can be in that privileged position based on social status, prestige, military control, or other means. Some modern examples of oligarchy include North Korea (because the ruling party passes from one family member to the next) and Mexico (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oligarchy). Modern examples of official plutocracies seem rare, though modern governments have been accused of being plutocratic (e.g., the State of California, United States of America). Oligarchy has always had a negative connotation, in contrast with aristocracy that had a positive connotation during classical times. Oligarchies do things to directly benefit their economic interests, rather than be concerned with their citizens. (http://www.auburn.edu/~johnspm/gloss/oligarchy) =Parliamentary (Danielle Agle, Ryan Nixon, Aaron Andersen) = A government in which the executive branch and the legislative branch are intertwined. No executive power (e.g. president) exists separate of the legislative branch (e.g., parliament, congress). The government in Great Britain is an example of a parliamentary government. Consists of two houses: The House of Lords and the House of Commons. To be a member of the House of Lords, one must be from the bloodline of a Lord. As the name suggests, anyone may be voted into the House of Commons. Other examples of modern parliamentary governments can be found at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parliamentary_system. Unlike the United States, where the executive branch (President) is voted upon in a separate election, the winning political party with the majority of the seats in Parliament, gets to select the Prime Minister. **Republic (Jeanne Prestwich, Becky Mitchell, Lucy Ordaz) ** A republic is a form of government in which the people, or some significant portion of them, retain supreme control over the government, at least in theory, and where offices of state are not granted through heritage. A state in which supreme power is held by the people and their elected representatives, and which has an elected or nominated president rather than a monarch. The state is governed by representatives elected by citizens. The word "republic" is derived from the Latin phrase res publica, which can be translated as "a public affair", and often used to describe a state using this form of government. **Socialism (Ryan Nixon, Brandon Jackson, Aaron Andersen) ** An economic system, primarily crafted by Lenin and based on the ideals of marxism, in which a central government controls all means of production to create a classless society where everyone is equal socioeconomically and socially. Originally created to dispel the evils of capitalism (e.g., greed, selfishness) it has "far surpassed capitalism in both economic malfunction and moral cruelty" (http://www.econlib.org/library/Enc/Socialism.html). This economic system seems to often be tied to communist governments. Though many countries have socialized aspects of their economy (e.g., China, United Kingdom, Germany, Venezula) it seems that few countries today are currently purely socialist. In Marxist philosophy, socialism is an intermediate step between capitalism and true communism. =Theocracy (Michele Thompson, Carol Ann--I edited it a tiny bit) = In a theocratic government, God is recognized by the people and leaders as the head of state and those in a theocratic leadership are usually clergy or some other person respected as a religious authority who receives divine guidance in respect to governance. While the idea of theocracy proposes to be divine in nature, the actual practice of it has historically been one of imposing control and power over others in unrighteous dominion. **Totalitarian (Leney (Loralene) Edvalson, Tricia Lund) ** An extreme form of government where the government has absolute power over the public, and wherever feasible, the private lives of its citizenry. One of the main methods of totalitarian control is through propaganda (i.e. When Hitler referenced Jews as being an inferior race, even though this was not the case.) The state of course controls all media sources and therefore controls what the citizenry hears and reads(summarized from Wikipedia). Absolute rule by a faction or class. **Tyranny (Danielle Agle, Amanda Henderson) ** Unrestrained exercise of power, or exercising power according to one's own will and judgment. The tyrant illegally seizes power, and often exploits those under themselves as they care more for themselves. Plato and Aristotle said that a tyrant was "one who rules without law, looks to his own advantage rather than that of his subjects, and uses extreme and cruel tactics -- against his own people as well as others" (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tyranny). **United Order (Michele Thompson, Lucy Ordaz) ** The United Order is a societal design derived from the Old Testament that strives to put into practice the law of consecration, or egalitarian communities. The movement had much in common with other communal-type utopian societies formed in the United States and Europe during the Second Great Awakening which sought to govern aspects of people's lives through precepts of faith and community organization (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Order). The purpose of implementing a United Order was to increase group self-sufficiency, eliminate poverty and achieve income equality. It is also a means of governing that assumes all members come with a belief in God as the primary Lord of the Earth. One voluntarily enters the United Order and consecrates all he owns to the order. Each member of the order is then given a stewardship according to their needs and are expected to care for and produce from that property. Any excess created from a crop or other form of property is voluntarily given to the order. The excess is then distributed to those who lack what they need. **//Did anyone check on lds.org for information published by the LDS Church on this definition (Dr. Erickson)//?**

=Further Information: Similar Governmental Structures (Ryan Nixon, Jacob Zonts) = These are some governmental structures that are similar, with an attempt to differentiate between the structures.

**Rule By A Few:**

 * Aristocracy--ruled by the best qualified
 * Communism--ruled by the most powerful (I disagree with this Communism label; I'm okay with Leninism)(Carol Ann)
 * Oligarchy/plutocracy--ruled by the privileged/rich

**Rule By One:**

 * Autocracy--by one
 * Dictatorship--by dictator, often associated with military
 * Monarchy--by the sovereign, often determined by heredity

**Rule By Many:**

 * Constitutional Republic--rule by elected officials with constitutional limits
 * Democracy--rule by the people
 * Parliamentary--rule by elected officials who make up a legislative body
 * Republic--rule by elected officials

Rule By None:

 * Anarchy

**Unjust Governments:** (These governmental theories are combined with other governmental structures)

 * Totalitarian--no respect for personal property from the leader
 * Tyranny--unrestrained power for the leader