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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