Gov unit1

What is Comparative Politics?Introduction to Comparative Politics

Activities associated with the control of public decisions among a given people in a given territory

→ decisions are authoritative and done with formal power

→ decisions are public, not private

Political science is the study of these decisions

Politics is…..

Government:

organization of individuals who are legally empowered to make binding decisions on behalf of a particular community

group of institutions and people authorized by formal documents to have a set of powers

Governments & the State of Nature

• Night Watchman State – government provides basic law & order, defense and property protection, but little else (limited government, 19th century)

• Police State – seen in authoritarian government, especially communist & fascist

• Welfare State – programs of social welfare, unemployment, insurance, pensions, etc.

• Regulatory State – similar to welfare state but with stricter regulations

States of Nature/Different forms of Government:

Condition if no government existed

• Thomas Hobbes – felt state of nature was chaos & conflict; government provided order & control

• Jean-Jacques Rousseau – felt state of nature was ideal; government corrupted society

• John Locke – in the middle; felt government was necessary for protection, but favored a limited government

State of Nature

• Community & Nation Building – stability, peace, a common culture

• Need for security & order – protect from internal & external attacks

• Protection – property and social & political rights

• Promote economic efficiency & growth – public & private goods, limit market failures (monopolies, i.e.)

Social Justice – redistribute wealth & resources, protect the weakest members of society

Why governments?

Destruction of community (economic or political reasons)

Basic rights violationsEconomic Inefficiency – restrictions,

governmental monopolies, etc.Private Gain – rent seekers are people who

use political pursuit for private gainCritics of government – anarchists (want no

government) libertarians (want limited government)

Problems of Government

• Set of institutions that formulate & implement the collective goals of society or of groups in society (legislative bodies, interest groups, courts, etc.)

• Shaped by domestic and international environment

• A collection of related and interacting institutions and agencies

• More successful with higher legitimacy

Political Systems Are…

A state is a political system that has sovereignty → the right to govern

All individuals and institutions that make public policy, whether they are in government or not (interest groups, i.e.)

State

Internal Sovereignty – deals with matters of citizens

External Sovereignty – deals with matter of other states

Internal & External Sovereignty

Country – distinct, politically defined territories that encompass political institutions, cultures, economies, and ethnic and other social identities Historically the most significant source of a

people's identity State – a cluster of powerful political

institutions; key institutions responsible for making, implementing, and enforcing policies Often synonymous with “government”

The Difference between a State and a Country

Big and small states Vatican City - smallest legally independent entity in

geographic size and populationRussia - largest landmass China and India - largest populations

Political implications of geographic and population size?Big countries not always most important: MongoliaSmall ones can be: Cuba, Israel

Area and population do not determine a country’s political system.

Geographic location can have strategic implications.

The Diversity of States

Pressures from Above A state loses some of its sovereignty from

supranational entities NAFTA, EU, IMF

To get an IMF bail out Mexico had to privatize many of its 1,155 state-owned enterprises

Pressures from Below A state cedes sovereignty to regional (sub-

national) entities Devolution in the UK Regional Cleavages

States have…

193 States are currently recognized by the United Nations

States can be multinational Soviet Union, Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia

Nations can be larger than states Germany China

Nations can be divided into distinct states Korea East & West Germany

Nations can have no state The Kurds The Basques The Palestinians

What about states?

• 1st world – capitalist democracy• 2nd world – communist (mainly Soviet)• 3rd world – remaining states that weren’t rich,

western or communist• 4th world – lack of resources, appear doomed

These terms are outdated → today we use…..– North States – rich, capitalist democracies– South States – developing states

Classification System

Gross National Product (GNP) – output per person that is a citizen of a nation, regardless of where they live (most common)

Gross Domestic Product (GDP) – output per person in a nation, regardless of where they are from

Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) – measures price levels of nations; most accurate

Also measure industrialization, income, education, life expectancy, birth rates, access to health care in addition to GNP/GDP

These are used to compare rich versus poor countries

These are important because income inequality can lead to political instability

Measuring the Economy

Building community

Fostering economic, social & political development

Securing a democracy and civil liberties

Challenges for all States

Nation – group of people with a common identity (language, history, race, culture)

Most states are multi-national (can be culturally diverse or explosive with conflict)

Ethnicity- identification based on racial, cultural or historical characteristics

• Religion plays a role– Christianity is largest religion, Islam is fastest

growing– Religious fundamentalism is on the rise (reject

modern testaments/views)Language – approximately 5000 languages spoken

today8 world languages: English, Spanish, Arabic,

Russian, Portuguese, French, German & Chinese

Building Community

Political systems must have economic development to satisfy citizens

Rich & poor countries differ in health, education, media and industry

Many states have internal economic inequality

Environment has suffered from industrialization, economic development & population growth

Fostering Development

Nation-State is when the national identification & legal authority coincide

Old states (pre WWII) were mostly European

New states (post WWII) are mainly African and post-Soviet Union

Old & New 68 states existed in 1945 By 2005, 125 new countries had been created

Nation-States

States – the organizations that control a territory

Country – includes the territory and people living within a state

Government – the leadership or elite that administer the state The Obama administration

States, Country, Government

Regimes are the norms and rules regarding individual freedoms and collective equality, the locus of power, and the use of that power

“The rules of the game governing the exercise of power”

Democratic Regimes Authoritarian Regimes Illiberal – partly free, some personal liberties and

democratic rights are limited

Regimes

Cleavage- deep and long-lasting political divisions

Political cleavage is when national, ethnic, linguistic & religious divisions effect policy

Cumulative cleavages are when the same people oppose one another on many issues

Cross cutting cleavages are when groups with a common interest on one issue are on opposite sides of another issue→ Cumulative cleavages are more destructive

Cleavages

• Democracy - leaders are elected in free and fair elections; citizens have basic rights & freedoms

• Democratization - the process of developing democratic states

Democracy, Human Rights and Civil Liberties

Samuel Huntington’s “3rd Wave of Democratization”

1st wave was after WWI

2nd wave was after WWII

3rd wave started in mid-1970’s

Democracy is the fastest growing political system

Waves of Democratization

Environmental issues

Economic inequality and instability

Ethnic differences

Religious differences

Challenges to Building a Democracy