PPG

• Politics - Is the actual conduct of power struggle in the course of resolving conflicts
• Politics is the actual conduct of power struggle in the course of resolving conflicts city stated
• Two main perspectives on politics: the location from which political behaviour is demonstrated and the process in which unique qualities of political behavior are exemplified
• Three basic issues in politics: legitimacy, sovereignty, and authority

  • Legitimacy: people’s attitude towards who they think is the “rightful” ruler to govern over them
  • Sovereignty: the right of a government to exist and rule over a certain territory and its subjects
  • Authority: the power of the leader to rule and exact obedience from the people
• Different views on politics:

  • Politics as the Art of Government
  • Politics as Public Affairs
  • Politics as Compromise and Consensus
  • Politics as Power
• Political science is the study of state and government affairs
• Political science tackles both normative and empirical questions, prescribing “what should be” and describing “what is” through gathering and analyzing information
• Aristotle first defined politics as “the science of state”
• Governance refers to the whole set of processes involving multiple actors and rules through which society addresses its collective problems and needs
• Government is a set of offices entrusted by the citizens of a state to make, enforce, and settle conflicts involving rules and regulations in the society
• Government offices are divided into three branches:

  • Executive branch: headed by the president, implements the laws of the land
  • Legislative branch: proposes, makes, and revises the laws of the land
  • Judiciary branch: interprets the laws of the land and settles conflicts regarding them
• The concept of governance:

  • Tribal Society: kinship system in hunting food, etc.
  • Islamic sultanates: datus coordinated activities
  • Modern societies: government creates and enforces rules
• Governance involves multiple actors:

  • Government
  • Businesses
  • Civil society groups
  • Church, schools, and media
  • Citizens and groups
• Dictatorship settles needs and problems by only one person/group
• Democratic systems welcome non-governmental actors to give inputs, propose, or complain about the rules
• Presidential systems have three separate and coequal branches
• Unitary systems have a structure where the national government is superior to local government
• Police Power involves the ability to regulate behavior, criminalize, and punish certain behavior
• Power of Taxation involves the ability to impose taxes to support government operations and services
• Power of Eminent Domain involves the ability to take private property for public use and services