POLI 2051 Lecture : Lecture Ch1
Document Summary
Government - a formally established way of making and carrying out political decisions. Politics - the competition to shape government"s impact on society"s problems and goals. We would exist in the state of nature . Social contract theory can guide us here to some extent. It is not a written contract, but rather, a general agreement between the people and their government. Normative - the way things ought to be. The people agree to give up some liberty, and in exchange, the government guarantees to protect what were called natural rights. (life, liberty, property) The contract derives from the assumption that government is based on the consent of the governed: protecting life providing a national defense. What does government do: promoting equality , protecting rights and liberties , providing public goods schooling, roads. Citizens disagree about which functions are most important and which functions should be most vigorously enforced.
