POLS 120 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Positive Liberty, Negative Liberty, Path Dependence
12 Oct 2018
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Negative liberty- absence of obstacles, barriers or constraints. Positive liberty - the possibility of acting to take control of one"s life. Empirical question - one where we can observe data. Government must actively be present to insure that you have your liberty. Autocracy- single figure with all the power. Oligarchy- small group of elites have all the power. Democracy- everyone has the ability to influence power. Totalitarian- whoever is in charge, the power they have is absolute. Authoritarian- they have control, but there is an external check on power. Constitutional- formal rules about what the government can do and what they have dominion over. Primary motivation for elected officials is to be elected again. Rationality - all political behavior has a purpose. Institution- rules and procedures that incentivize behavior. Us senate- used to be elected by state legislature. Individuals have different goals and preferences but often need each other to succeed. Policy principle - political outcomes are products of:
