Political Philosophy
Five Principles of American Democracy
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Rule of Law
Popular Sovereignty
Respect for Individualism
Equality of Opportunity
Personal Liberty
Rule of Law
• The government and its officials and agents are
accountable under the law.
• The laws are clear, publicized, stable and fair, and
protect fundamental rights, including the security of
persons and property.
• The process by which the laws are enacted, administered
and enforced is accessible, fair and efficient.
• Access to justice is provided by competent, independent, and
ethical adjudicators, attorneys or representatives and judicial
officers who are of sufficient number, have adequate
resources, and reflect the makeup of the communities they
serve.
Popular Sovereignty
• The doctrine that sovereign power is vested in the people
and that those chosen to govern, as trustees of such power,
must exercise it in conformity with the general will.
Respect for Individualism
• Respect for the moral worth of the individual. What does that
mean?
Equality of Opportunity
• Every has the same chances. What are some
examples of “Equality of Opportunity?”
Personal Liberty
• People can make decisions for themselves. You decide
what you want to do with your gifts and your life.
• If you are the greatest chess player in the world, you
don’t have to play chess for a living. You can be a
terrible bowler if you want to.
• There are exceptions,
however. If you are such
a bad bowler that you
consistently put people in
danger, you may not be
allowed to chase that
particular dream…
Majority Rule?
• Doesn’t Majority Rule sound like it could be part
of American Democracy?
• It is, but only with a caveat: there have to be
protections for the minority! These are the
“collective rights”; things that every individual is
entitled to. These things can’t be taken from any
individual, even by a majority.
• What are some examples?
Four Concepts of Power Distribution
• Marxism
• Elitism
• Bureaucratism
• Pluralism
Marxism
• Those who own the means of production,
controlling the economic system, will control the
government.
• Let’s begin with one basic principle: the world is
materialistic.
Proletariat and Bourgeoisie
• The proletariat is a term used to identify a
lower social class, usually the working class.
• The Bourgeoisie describes a social class
"characterized by their ownership of capital, and
their related culture."
Marxism
• Marxism is a conflict theory
which argues that society is
characterized by
disagreement and conflict
between social groups.
• Conflict is most noted
between the Rich and the
Poor, which in turn equals
the powerful and the
powerless.
Marxism
• Marxists argue that the way societies produce
the goods that they need (Mode of Production)
affects how a society treats its people.
Marxism
• Marxists argue against a society where a small
number of people own the forces of production.
This is essentially our society; one person owns a
company in which many people work.
Let’s play a game…
• We need eight volunteers:
▫ Four of you will be capitalists: one CEO and three
workers.
▫ Four of you will be Marxists: one supervisor and
three workers.
The workers must come up with as many words as they can think of
that starts with the letter Mr. Geroe assigns them.
• The CEO/supervisor may help any individual he wishes, but can only
help one at a time.
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Marxism
• When dealing with Marxism, you first take into
account the concept that money can be
translated into power. This wealth division
creates a class-system; the haves and the havenots. This class system is also unbreakable; the
poor remain poor and the wealthy remain
wealthy. Thus, workers live in a world of
perpetual exploitation.
Marxism
• Marx proposed
revolution by the
subject class (the
proletariat) towards
Communism, where
there would be no
class system and
everybody would be
equal.
Marxism
• Laws, society, religion,
and media are all
designed to keep you
focused on anything
OTHER than the
Bourgeoisie.
• So while you’re watching
Adventure Time, you
don’t have time to
realize that you could be
earning a lot more than
you currently do.
Elitism
• A few top leaders, drawn from the major sectors
of the United States polity, will make all
important decisions.
Elitism
• C. Wright Mills expressed the view of Elitism in
his book: The Power Elite.
Elitism
• There are three majors groups of elites who set
policy for most Americans, according to Mills:
▫ The Military Elite
▫ The Corporate Elite
▫ The Political Elite
Elitism - Military
In the United States, often our highest military officials make key
decisions about our foreign policy. Though they are ultimately serving
under the President as Commander in Chief, their advice is given
incredible weight. These individuals are often long serving, and upon
retiring will often enter politics or the corporate world.
Elitism - Corporate
Through their influence
over the job market and
the economy, to their
power over Washington
through the large
amounts of money they
can put into elections,
Corporate leaders have
far more say in our
government than the
average person.
Elitism - Political
▫ Harvard University
John Adams
John Quincy Adams
Rutherford B. Hayes (Law
School)
Theodore Roosevelt
Franklin D. Roosevelt
John F. Kennedy
George W. Bush (Business
School)
Barack Obama (Law School)
▫ Yale University
William Howard Taft
Gerald R. Ford
George H. W. Bush
Bill Clinton
George W. Bush
Princeton University
James Madison
Woodrow Wilson
Military Academy
Ulysses S. Grant
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Jimmy Carter
Bureaucratism
• Appointed civil servants control the government,
without consulting the public.
• What are some important examples of
government bureaucratic agencies that aren’t
elected by the American people?
Pluralist
• Competition among affected interests shapes
public policy decision-making
▫ People are powerful because they control various
resources.
▫ Resources are assets that can be used to force
others to do what one wants.
▫ Resources include money, prestige, expertise,
experience, organizational position, media access,
etc.
▫ Different levels of government with powers, too:
local, state, federal.
Pluralists
• Power is widely spread, though not necessarily
equally.
▫ Rush Limbaugh is certainly more influential in
conservative groups than is David Brooks. But
both can have impact on the Republican Party in
their own way.
• Pluralists argue people use their resources to
compete for power. This power is used by
individuals and organizations to promote their
own self-interest.
• Doe this theory help us understand why
monopolies can be dangerous?
Discussion
• Which power structure do you subscribe to?
Marxism? Pluralism? Elitism? Bureaucratism?
None of the above? Explain why?
▫ It’s okay to say Marxism. That doesn’t make you a
communist. We’re talking about observations of
power, not how you think the country should be
governed. I’ve met Marxists who aren’t
communists.